Leave Out All the Rest
by Keira Eve MacDonnell
Summary: James & Bella experience an amazing week together until James' friends show up. After blowing her off, he realizes the mistake he's made, but she's gone. What happens when she shows up at his school? Will he be able to win her back or will someone else?
1. Chapter 1

All recognizeable characters are property of Stephanie Meyer and the author makes no financial gains from using them. I just like to make them spoiled little rich kids.

This story will bounce back and forth between the present time (senior year) and the summer before. Please do not hesitate to PM me with any questions you may have.

Big thanks to Kaila for betaing this for me.

* * *

James Evans stood next to Garrett Lindsey, leaning against his gleaming, black Lotus, watching as the rest of his friends arrived in their elite cars that cost more than their teachers' salaries. Demetri Litchfield sat with his back against the brick wall on the stone bench outside the music room, his light brown hair falling over his forehead and covering his dark blue eyes. He half listened to his friends' asinine conversations and half read _The Fountain Head_. Edward Cullen walked up with Emmett McCarty as James noticed Kate's 2007 Bentley Continental GTC pulling into the parking lot.

He made out her icy smirk as an unsuspecting freshman tried to cross the parking lot in front of her and almost lost their toes in the process. Alice's small head bounced around in the seat next to her and James could see another figure in the back.

_Who else would be arriving with Kate?_ He thought to himself. Angela had come and gone, and was undoubtedly holed up in the library with some new book. How Edward could put up with such a bookworm was beyond him. Rosalie was perched next to Demetri brushing through her messy blonde locks (although it was unnecessary), and Tanya's Mercedes Benz SLR McLaren was pulling in behind Kate.

_It could be Kate's brother,_ he thought; _he would be a freshman this year. _ _No_, he thought, certain; Kate wouldn't give her brother a ride and plus, he'd seen Tyler earlier.

"New meat?" James asked Garrett motioning to Kate's car where Alice was now getting out and offering a hand to whomever was in the back.

Garrett toyed with a nonexistent piece of fuzz on his black blazer; one of the perks to being a senior: you could wear the traditional "senior" colored green blazer or a black one.

"I do vaguely recall Kate saying something about a new girl, but I can't seem to remember her name," Garrett responded in his usual bored tone.

James leaned back in an attempt to see around Alice to catch a glimpse of the girl getting out. At first all he could see was a long, slender yet muscular leg covered in white knee highs, but as Alice moved from blocking his view he took in all five foot seven inches of the girl whose heart he had broken at the beginning of summer.

"Isabella," the name escaped his lips almost as a sigh.

"Yes, that was it," Garrett acknowledged with a slight smirk that let James know that Garrett had known exactly who was in the car and had remembered the vehemently awful things James had said to her on the Fourth of July. Without another word, James quickly turned and strode angrily away from his friends towards the school's entrance.

"No need to make a scene," Garrett called out after him, still in a bored tone.

The quick blur caused Demetri to look up and his eyes rested on the brunette beauty standing with Alice. He smiled, slightly amused at how short Alice looked standing next to the new girl and wondered what had offended James so much that he'd stalked away from a pretty new face.

Bella climbed lithely out of the backseat of Kate's car with Alice's assistance and straightened her hunter green, seersucker uniform skirt once both of her Manolo clad feet were on the pavement. She smirked and straightened her tie as she watched James stalk off in a fury.

_Bet he sure as hell didn't expect to see me here_, she thought smugly.

Kate was already pressed against a dark haired cocky looking boy that Bella recognized as Garrett. Kate wrapped Garrett's tie around her hand pulling him closer. He moved to kiss her but she leaned back, just slightly out of his reach.

"You didn't tell him, did you?" she asked, shaking out her mahogany locks that were currently being maintained by a large headband.

"Of course not," he said still sounding arrogant but not as bored. "Do you think I want to get into trouble with you on the first day of school?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"I think you always want to be in trouble with me," Kate replied saucily, meeting his lips with her own.

Tanya walked slowly around her car, lightly running her fingers over it as she stealthily made her way to Edward. Her blonde hair was bouncing with finesse this morning around her emerald blazer as she cautiously eyed the surrounding area for Angela. Seeing no sign of her, she made her way over to Edward. He looked up at her with mild interest, his green eyes sparkling in the morning sun. Tanya ran her fingers over the lapel of his blazer and stopped directly over his well defined abs.

"I love this shade on you," she purred. "It makes your eyes shine." She grazed her lips along his jaw line and he smirked grabbing her hip.

"There are lots of things that make my eyes shine," he said, smirking at her again and then threw his arm over her shoulder as they made their way inside.

"I thought he was with Angela?" Bella asked quietly, standing between Kate and Alice.

"We're all friends here," Rosalie said, walking over and hoisting herself onto the hood of James' car. "Share and share alike," she said, smirking.

"Really?" Bella asked eyeing Kate suspiciously.

"Really," Kate confirmed, not taking her eyes off of Garrett. "Except I don't share," she admitted pulling him along behind her still holding onto his tie.

"And I don't do high school boys," Alice said, shrugging and following after them.

"And we don't tell Angela about Edward's playboy ways," Rosalie confided, slipping her arm into Bella's and leading her into the school.

"She doesn't know?" Bella asked, surprised. The girl she'd met at finishing camp over the summer didn't seem the type to be easily fooled, but she hadn't really spent that much time with her.

"Her nose is always in a book," Rosalie said honestly. "You could probably grope him in front of her and she wouldn't even notice it as long as she was reading."

"A good thought to keep in mind, seeing as you're staying with him." Kate smirked back at her as they walked up the steps.

"Why date her then if he's messing around with everyone else?" Bella asked, slightly confused. As much time as she'd spent with these girls over the summer, she still did not understand the way they lived. "I get the whole playboy angle, but then why have a girlfriend?"

"Oh he doesn't 'flirt'," Rosalie said using air quotes, "with everyone, just us." She winked as she deposited Bella into her first period class and sauntered off down the hall.

James watched as the one girl who had ever really gotten to him was led inside his school by girls who knew every despicable thing he had ever done. When she'd told him that she was staying with family friends while her parents were traveling abroad this summer, he never expected it to be with one of his best friend's families and to have to go through his senior year with her. He could remember the look of hurt and confusion on her face while other's partied around them. Nothing he'd said was true, but it hadn't mattered, she'd believed it all and disappeared anyways. He took a long inhale off the joint between his fingers, getting lost in the smoke and memory of the first time he'd met her.

_June 28__th_

James stomped down the wooden steps of the deck and onto the sand. He couldn't believe his family came out to North Hills Beach a week early.

_No one ever gets here until the Fourth of July_, he thought bitterly.

The sand beneath his feet felt warm in the late afternoon sun, but it did little to help his bad mood. He trudged along down the beach in a pair of black and white board shorts and a white t-shirt. He carried is flip flops with him just in case he decided to wander off the beach. The sound of the waves crashing onto the sand began to uncoil his muscular shoulders a bit. James was tall at 6'4" with dark blond hair and slate gray eyes. He had a killer smile and a lean muscular frame from playing basketball and running track.

Thinking of the lonely week ahead of him made him depressed again though. His buddies wouldn't be here until Sunday which meant he had six days of no entertainment. Sure, he could go into town and hook up with some of the townies if he wanted to, but that was more for sport with the guys than anything else.

He glanced up and a pair of long, lightly tanned legs caught his eye. He thought he knew all the families that rented the houses along the beach, but he was certain he didn't know this girl. He quietly made his way up the steps of her deck to get a better view. The girl had a toned frame and long legs. She wore a one piece bathing suit with green circles running all over it. Her hair was medium brown and slightly frizzy. She held a book in her hands and looked thoroughly engrossed in it.

"What'cha reading?" he asked, sitting down on the lounge chair next to her.

"_Great Expectations_," she said, glancing over at him. "This is a private beach you know," she informed him with a small smile that said she really wasn't upset that he had interrupted her reading.

"I know," he said. "My family has a house a couple down." He motioned with his hand. "James Evans," he said, introducing himself and shaking her hand.

"Isabella Swan," she replied with an amazing smile. Her brown eyes were soft, like the smoothest of chocolates.

"So, you're new around here," James observed.

"Yes." Her tone was bored and she turned slightly back to her book.

"Where are you from?" he asked, trying to gain her attention back.

"Phoenix." Her fingers danced across the page before turning it.

"What brings you to the beach?"

Bella frowned slightly; she was never going to get any reading done as long as he kept talking.

"My family is going to be traveling abroad this year and they thought it would be nice if we spent one last summer together as next year I'll be heading off to college," she said, finally giving him something.

"You're not traveling with your family then?" he asked, actually interested which surprised him.

"No," she said and he thought he noticed a bit of sadness in her tone, "I'll be spending the year with some family friends. So," she said, setting her book down and finally turning towards him, "why are you here so early?"

"What do you mean?" he asked, confused.

"Well, the real estate agent told Renee that most of the families don't come out until the Fourth of July."

"Yeah." James leaned back in the chair his earlier depression remembered.

"What's your deal then?" she finally asked as he had given no more of a response.

"My family decided to come out early because my mother wanted to redecorate our house," he said, getting more annoyed as he thought about it. His mother really needed a hobby he thought; although, maybe this was her hobby. It sure beat the hell out of getting plastered by noon and screwing the gardener like some of his friends' moms did.

"You're not happy about it," she stated.

"No," he admitted, looking at her again. She had smooth shoulders and a nice chest; he wondered what she'd look like in a bikini.

"Why not?" she asked, oblivious to his ogling.

"None of my friends will be here until the end of the week." He began fiddling with a string on the hem of his shorts trying to find something to distract his eyes from her bare skin.

"You don't enjoy the quiet?"

"Sometimes," he said, noncommittally.

"I don't get you," Bella said, suddenly slapping her arms down. "You come up on my deck and disturb my reading and then when I start participating in the conversation you answer as if I'm protruding on your time."

He couldn't resist laughing at her. She was absolutely right and he found her anger amusing. Her face grew hotter as he laughed. She slid her sun glasses on and thrust her back against the chair and turned her face to the sky.

"You're quite adorable when you're angry," he said, smiling at her. "And you're absolutely right." She turned towards him again, surprised at his honesty.

"Isabella, dear." Her mother sashayed out onto the deck. James looked up to the older woman: she wasn't bad looking; late forties maybe, nice tight legs and perfectly coiffed hair just like his mother's and all of her friends'. "Well, hello there," she said eyeing James appreciatively.

"Hello ma'm," he said, politely standing and shaking her hand. "I'm…" he began to introduce himself.

"Oh I know who you are," she said, seductively. "You're the Evans boy."

"Guilty," he said, throwing her his killer smile. Bella rolled her eyes as she watched her mother flirt with the boy half her age.

"You taking care of my girl?" she asked with a suggestive eyebrow.

"I'm trying." James' eyes lit up as he threw a smile at Bella.

"Did you need something mom?" Bella asked in the sweetest voice she could muster. She had witnessed her mother hit on younger men way too many times to count and it always grated on her nerves. She could tell that this little conversation was headed down the same path.

"Oh, yes," she said as if she just remembered her daughter was there. "Marta said there's this fabulous little market in town on Monday nights and I was thinking you could go down there and get some fresh produce for the house."

"I don't know where it is," Bella said, simply, "and I know you wouldn't want me getting lost in a town I don't know."

"I could show you the way," James offered before her mother could say anything.

"Perfect," her mom squealed, clapping her hands together and smiling a huge grin as she clicked back into the house.

Bella shot James a look and he just offered her his hand up in reply. She placed her hand in his and swung her feet onto the deck. Before she'd had a chance to rise, James tugged on her arm and she flew up to meet him chest to chest. The heat in Bella's face grew hotter and it had nothing to do with the sun beating down on her.

"Don't make that face," James said and was over come by the how much he wanted to kiss her, "it'll be fun."

James followed slowly behind Bella as she walked by each stall, checking out the strawberries and other fresh produce the vendors were selling. He was mesmerized at the way her hips swung as she walked along. He pulled a rose out of one of the vendor's arrangements and leaned over Bella's shoulder presenting it to her as she paid for some zucchini.

"What's this for?" she asked as she smelled it.

"To apologize." He took the bag from her and began walking beside her.

"For?" She looked up at him curiously while smelling the rose.

"You were right earlier: I was bothering you and then I was an ass to you," he said and was surprised that he felt no ulterior motive at his statement.

"I didn't say you were bothering me," she backpedaled slightly.

_Ah, so she does like me_, he thought to himself smugly. "Am I bothering you now?" he asked.

"No." She smiled before smelling the flower again.

"So, tell me about your friends," she said after they had walked a little more; "the ones you're waiting for so you have entertainment."

"I don't want to talk about them," he said, honestly. "Tell me about you."

"What do you want to know?" she asked, surprised at his sudden interest.

"How come I've never seen you here before?"

"Maybe you've just never noticed me," she said, coyly.

"No, I'd remember a face like yours."

Bella smiled and shook her head lightly, chuckling quietly to herself. She turned and handed him back the flower.

"If you want to know about me, fine, but I could do without your over used pickup lines," she said and began walking away from him.

"It wasn't a pickup line," he said when he finally caught up to her. Bella said nothing and continued walking.

"I know your type," she began, not looking at him. "You're good looking and you know it. You take whatever you decide you want rather than seeing if it's something you'll want in the future. People are a game to you and you use them as pawns to entertain yourself. Obviously your friends are the same way, and that's why you get along so well. You seem to have decided that I may be the only person around here to talk to for the week, so you thought you'd cozy up to me."

James didn't know what to think about everything she had just said. The part that irked him the most, more than her being dead on, was the fact that she had delivered her little speech in an even tone without a hint of anger.

"That was a memorable day to me, for it made great changes in me. But, it is the same with any life. Imagine one selected day struck out of it, and think how different its course would have been. Pause you who read this, and think for a moment of the long chain of iron or gold, of thorns or flowers, that would never have bound you, but for the formation of the first link on one memorable day," James quoted _Great Expectations_.

Bella stopped and turned around and faced him. "You've read it," she said, an amused smile playing on her lips.

"Don't tell anyone," he said with a small smile.

"There may be hope for you after all Evans," she said with a smirk.

Present day

Jasper Hale walked into his first period French class and scoped the room out for the seat he knew he'd be in all year. Madame Alexandria insisted that where they sat on the first day was where they sat the whole year; she would not have something as simple as seating take time away from her lesson plans.

Jasper noticed a girl he was not familiar with, she was sitting in the second row from the wall he was currently leaning on in the fourth seat back. She had glossy brown hair with light blond streaked through it. So light that it almost looked as if someone had spun gold into her hair.

_Next to her or behind her?_ He wondered to himself silently.

As he stood trying to decide, the room began to fill and he chose the seat behind the girl. He slid into the desk as she shook out her hair letting it fall, silkily, over her shoulders and down her back. Jasper inhaled a deep breath smelling one of the sweetest scents he had ever smelled.

_Strawberries_, he thought with a serene look on his face. He thought about the first week of school bet his friends and he usually wagered. _She'd do for the first lay of the school year_, he thought naughtily.

He leaned forward in his desk until his lips were right next to her ear. "You smell enchanting," he whispered, lightly.

The hairs on the back of her neck stood up as she felt the voice behind her and slowly turned around to find a set of piercing, ice blue eyes staring back at her under a tidy mess of blond locks. As soon as the girl turned and looked him straight in the face, both of their faces fell.

"And you look like someone who has an asshole for a friend," Bella gritted through her teeth recognizing James' friend from the Fourth of July bash where James had utterly humiliated her in front of this boy and Garrett. She turned, sharply, back around to face the front of the room.

"Aw come on now darlin'," he said with a slight southern accent. "Don't hold the wrong doings of my friend against me."

Bella turned to face him again. "You were there and didn't say anything to him," she said, trying to control the anger welling up inside of her.

"True," he admitted, "but I didn't know you from Eve and none of that shit was my business."

He fell back against his chair and she eyed him cautiously. Bella stared at him trying to make up her mind. He was awfully cute, she could see thick muscles under his white shirt and emerald blazer and his blue eyes were certainly easy to look into.

"Hell," he began, waving his hand, "I don't even know your name."

"Bella Swan," she said, relaxing a bit.

"It's nice to meet you Bella," he said, taking her hand from the back of her chair and kissing it lightly. "I'm Jasper, but everyone calls me 'J'," he said, winking at her.

"Jasper?" she asked, "That's a different name."

"It's Persian," he informed her, leaning forward again. "It means treasure," he said with a smile that wouldn't quit.

"I can see that," Bella said lifting an eyebrow and then turning back around.

Emmett walked down the hall with a blond on each arm and a grin across his face displaying his dimples proudly. His blue eyes danced as the girls on either side of him begged him to spend lunch with them. He noticed his buddies standing at the entrance to the cafeteria and found his out.

"Please Em," the one on the left begged, looking up at him and trying to push her breasts together at the same time. She didn't have a bad rack, but it was nothing special either. Emmett knew this girl would be making a visit to Dr. Hale before the year was out.

"Sorry ladies," he apologized, not sorry at all as he untangled his arms from their grasp. "I gotta spend some time with my boys." He nodded in the direction to where his friends were standing. "I'll see you after practice." He winked and slapped them both on the behind as they giggled and walked away.

"I sense a bet coming on," Garrett said, his bored tone ever-present, as Emmett approached where he was standing listening to Edward and Jasper argue over what kind of underwear the new girl might be wearing.

"Sophomores?" J asked, glancing at the two red skirts that were walking away from Emmett. "Didn't you already make your way through that class?"

"Girl with the curls got new boobs," Emmett smirked. "Remind me to thank your dad." J's dad was a plastic surgeon and had worked on over half the women in town and half the girls in the school. "And the one with the cute ass will be seeing him before the year's out."

"So what's the bet?" James asked, stepping up to join them.

"I don't feel the need to bet over whether that chick gets a new chest," Emmett responded, indignantly.

"We're not talking about the vapid airheads you spend your time with," J rolled his eyes.

"See, there's this nice little piece of new ass over there," Edward said, nodding to the table where their female friends were sitting. Bella was leaned across the table with her back to the guys discussing something with Alice. The heels of her shoes pointed out and the angle at which she was leaning made her legs seem longer than they were. "I say she's wearing a lacy black thong," Edward said with a smug smile.

"I don't see how this is fair," Emmett said to him, "you live with her."

"I don't watch her dress," he replied, shrugging.

"If you wanna go that route," Garrett said, speaking up and glancing at them slightly, "James is out too."

"Why's James out?" Edward's head whipped back to look at James.

"He tapped it at the beginning of summer," J said, smirking.

"You tapped that already?" Emmett offered James a fist bump which he half heartedly returned.

"And then fucked her over royally," Garrett said, not looking up this time.

"Fine, fine." Emmett rolled his eyes and shrugged giving up. "Everyone's in. Garrett holds the money."

"Lacy black thong, like I said." Edward handed over a crisp hundred dollar bill.

"White cotton boy shorts," J said, grinning.

"Black, spandex, and boring," James said, slightly annoyed with the bet but not wanting to ruin it.

"Nada." Emmett smirked and bobbed his head slightly.

"White lace boy shorts," Demetri said, walking up and handing Garrett is bill.

"Demetri," Garrett acknowledged his friend, "I am surprised at you."

"It's all in fun right?" he said, shrugging.

"Edward, the bet was your idea, so the honor is yours," Garrett granted.

"Won't Angie get mad?" James asked in patronizing voice.

"Angela." Edward turned back towards him, gritting his teeth. "And what she doesn't know won't hurt her."

"Story of your relationship," Demetri said under his breath.

Edward straightened his tie and blazer as he made his way across the cafeteria and leaned down next to Bella.

"And you're sure it's not going to be an issue with the other girls?" Bella asked Alice.

"Please," Alice scoffed, "like their opinion matters." Rosalie glanced curiously at Edward wondering why he was just leaning there.

"I just don't want to upset anyone," Bella admitted, biting her lip slightly. Edward slowly brought his hand back to the hem of Bella's skirt.

"How sweet," Kate said with faux sweetness, "you worry about other's feelings." Edward gently lifted Bella's skirt so that the guys could get a glimpse.

"You'll get over it soon," Rosalie said and motioned for Bella to turn around.

Edward was still facing forward as if nothing was going on, but Bella turned quickly enough to see his hand move and felt her skirt fall back over her behind.

_Thinks he can show my underpants off to the entire world does he?_ She thought quickly. Edward had a smirk on his face practically begging her to do something, so, she did. "What the fuck?" Bella shoved her hand into his chest, making him fall onto the seat, his back smacking hard into the table behind him.

A small 'ooof' came out as his back made contact with the table. Bella slid her knee between his legs and positioned her hands on either side of him before bringing her face inches from his. His green eyes, which only moments ago had looked mischievous, now had a bit of fear in them. "If you wanted to see my panties," she breathed, lightly into his face before moving her lips to his ear, "you should have just asked."

With that she rubbed her knee along his crotch before getting up and walking towards the lunch line where Rosalie had already gone and was waiting for her. Alice let out a soft giggle from behind Edward as he continued to sit there and ponder what the hell had just happened.

"What the fuck was that?" Tanya slid in next to him but her attention was focused on Kate.

"Share and share alike," was all Kate replied, but began laughing with Alice.

Edward continued to sit, willing his erection to go down before he made his way back over to the boys. Of course that was when Angela made her way in. She sat down next to him with a questioning stare.

"Love," he said in greeting, nodding his head slightly.

"What's with you?" she asked, concern all over her face. Kate stifled another giggle and focused on the salad in front of her. "You sound out of breath."

"Sat down too fast," he explained, lamely. "I'll be right back." He got up and placed a chaste kiss on her forehead before quickly taking off across the room. Angela glanced over at Tanya who just shrugged and so she turned back to the book in her left hand.

"Please tell me it was a thong," Edward all but begged, running a hand through his messy brown hair.

"Nope," Demetri said as he put the money from the bet into his wallet. "White. Lace. Boy shorts."

The guys finally made their way over to the table and took up seats where available.

"Please tell me you were not part of that." Kate looked slightly disgusted as Garrett took the seat next to her.

"No, I was not," he said with a strained look. "However, I do take part in the ones that have nothing to do with my friends."

"I would expect nothing less," she smirked.

"Tell me you at least won," Tanya said, smirking at Edward over Angela's head. He shot her a dirty look glancing down at Angela.

J glanced up as Bella and Rosalie made their way back to the table.

"Hey, Strawberries," he said with a cocky grin to Bella.

"Excuse me?" she asked with an eyebrow raised.

"You can sit right here darlin'." J motioned to the open seat next to him.

"Could," she said, nodding and then took the open seat between Demetri and Emmett. "Won't." She smirked in his direction and he became even more intrigued. "So," Bella began turning towards Demetri and taking a bite of her parfait. "You won the bet?" she asked, her brown eyes twinkling brightly.

Demetri turned four shades of red and lowered his gaze to his lap. "Yes," he mumbled.

"Don't be embarrassed," she said and lightly kissed his cheek. "Gotta haze the new girl, right?"

"This chick is awesome!" Emmett bellowed pulling Bella into his side under his huge arm. "What the fuck were you thinking when you let her go Evans?"

"Fuck this." James got up and strolled out of the cafeteria and pointing at some nameless sophomore who got up and followed him out.

"Did I say something?" Emmett asked, looking slightly hurt and loosening his grip on Bella.

"Don't worry," Angela said, not looking up from her book, "he's getting it blown out of his system."

Edward's eyes grew wide and he tugged her book from her hands. She looked up, annoyed and surprised like she just realized that everyone else was there.

"Explain please?" Edward looked pointedly at her.

"Just because my head is always in a book doesn't mean I'm oblivious." Angela snatched her book back from him.

"Good to know," Tanya said under her breath to Rosalie who giggled softly.

"I listen to your conversations," Angela admitted, focusing back on her book. "Just because I don't mention the fact that James sometimes needs a mid-day blow job to get rid of some stress and there are currently twelve sophomores in line for that job; or that Emmett frequently has some freshman waiting for him after practice whether he does or does not partake in her; or the fact that the only reason Jaz passed history last year was because he boned the teacher's daughter and threatened to ruin her reputation if he didn't get an A. And then there's Rosalie…" she trailed off, glancing up briefly.

"Okay, I think we get the point," Kate said, pointedly. For the first time, that the majority of them could remember, they sat in silence for the rest of lunch.

"The fuck was that?" Rosalie asked as she, Kate, Tanya, and Bella were changing for gym.

"Bullshit, that's what it was." Tanya pulled her white tennis skirt up over her perfect hips.

"Out of curiosity," Bella started, sliding her arms through the emerald green racer back tank top, "what was she going to say about you Rosalie?"

"Let's just say I don't like to study." Rosalie tossed the rest of her stuff into her gym locker and waited with her hands on her hips.

"And all her teachers are male," Kate explained the obvious, tying the laces on her shoes.

"Ah," Bella said, closing her locker and walking out to the tennis courts with the others.

"Hey! Do you guys need a fourth?" A short girl with frizzy blond hair, bounced up to Tanya and Kate.

"Can you count, Janice?" Kate asked annoyed.

"Jamie," the girl corrected Kate, still looking excited.

"Like it matters," Tanya said as they walked past the girl.

"Maybe next time," Rosalie said sincerely as she and Bella followed the others.

"I still don't see why she thought it was okay to air dirty laundry in public," Tanya said as she served the ball. Bella returned it easily and they volleyed back and forth.

"In the cafeteria of all places." Kate smashed the ball in front of Rosalie who swung and missed.

"You think she saw the thing with Edward and was making a point to me?" Bella returned a difficult serve from Tanya.

"Don't be so concerned Bells," Kate instructed with assurance.

"Yeah," Rosalie said, returning the ball with effort. "If anyone should be worried it should be Tanya."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Tanya asked, approaching the net.

"Please, dear." Kate bounced the ball next to her as they all gathered around the net. "Like you're so secretive about your attraction to Edward."

"Ladies!" The coach blew her whistle at them. "Do we have a problem?"

"No, Coach Clapp," Rosalie replied sweetly. "We're just having an important discussion on serving."

"Carry on," the coach said, turning her back to them. Kate rolled her eyes before focusing back on her friends.

"I still don't like the way she aired it all," Tanya said, obviously unsatisfied by the whole incident. Bella smiled to herself; Tanya was fishing for something to be done so she could get a clear path to Edward.

_Clever girl_, Bella thought. _Better watch out for her._

"What are you suggesting Tanya?" Kate raised her eyebrows.

"Come on you guys," Rosalie pleaded with her conniving friends. "She's one of us, at least as long as she's dating Edward."

"Until then…" Kate let her voice trail off as she bounced the ball on her racket and then smacked it at Rosalie.

"Hey!" she laughed as the ball narrowly missed her. The ball rolled across two courts and into some bushes.

"Yoo hoo!" Bella hollered, waving her hand at a freshman walking along the court. "Be a dear and grab that ball." The freshman tore into the bushes coming out with the ball a minute later and sprinted it over to Bella. "Thanks." She smiled a wide fake grin. "You're a doll." Bella patted the girl on the head and the girl smiled as if she had just met the queen.

"She's learning fast," Tanya acknowledged to Kate who smiled approvingly at her protégé.


	2. Chapter 2

All recognizeable characters are property of Stephanie Meyer and the author makes no financial gains from using them. I just like to make them spoiled little rich kids.

This story will bounce back and forth between the present time (senior year) and the summer before. Please do not hesitate to PM me with any questions you may have.

Big thanks to Kaila for betaing this for me.

Thank you to those of you who have added my story to your favorites or alerts, I really hope you enjoy it. The first several chapters should post pretty quick, but they may start to slow down after chapter 10. Thanks for reading!

* * *

_June 28__th_

James spent the rest of the afternoon with his Xbox, mindlessly absorbed in Madden NFL. No matter how many times he scored, he couldn't get Isabella out of his head.

"James, honey," his mother said, coming into the room, her cloud of Chanel No.5 enveloping him. "Your father and I are headed out; Marcus is preparing your dinner: quiche and crab cakes."

"Alright, thanks," he said, tonelessly as she kissed him on the cheek. _Quiche, yuck;_ he shuddered when she had left the room.

Madden soon lost his interest, so he made his way into the kitchen. He pulled up a stool to the center island in the state of the art kitchen his mother had redone last year and ran his finger over the smooth tiles.

"Master James," Marcus greeted him, cheerfully. "Hungry?"

"Not for quiche and crab cakes," James said, sullenly.

"Well I guess it's a good thing I made you French toast instead," Marcus responded and James' face immediately perked up. James loved having breakfast foods for dinner, but his mother never allowed it, telling him that it wasn't proper.

"Breakfast foods are to eaten in the a.m. hours," she had informed him.

"French toast with fresh strawberries." Marcus slid the plate in front of James.

"My man," he said bumping fists with Marcus. "Delish." James' eyes rolled back into his head as he popped a strawberry into his mouth.

James ate in silence for a couple minutes before Marcus began making small talk. James normally didn't mind talking with Marcus; he had been there more for him during his family's summers here than anyone else ever had.

"I see there's a new family on the beach this year," Marcus said as he began to pile the dishes into the sink.

"The Swans," James said through a mouthful.

"I hear they have a daughter," Marcus said, coyly awaiting James' reaction.

"Isabella," he answered, popping another strawberry into his mouth.

"You've met the young lady then?" Marcus was doing his best to seem uninterested. He had seen James make his way through the girls in town every summer and was waiting for the right girl to come along and smack some sense into the boy. Marcus cared for James as if he were his own son and didn't want to see him end up like his father, having late night "business calls" with his secretary every other night.

"We went to the market earlier," James said, attempting nonchalance at an event he hadn't been able to stop thinking about since.

"What's she like?" Marcus casually began washing dishes.

"Cute, nice rack," James said, trying to remember how he'd described most of his conquests to Marcus. James quickly realized that Isabella was not like all the other girls he'd fucked over his summers here. "Actually, she called me on my bullshit."

"I like her already." Marcus smirked at him. "Those are the good ones."

"The ones that call you on your bullshit?" James asked, confused.

"That's normally the first sign of finding the right girl," Marcus informed him as he began drying the dishes. "First they call you on your bullshit and then they've got you quoting Shakespeare." Marcus chuckled, remembering his youth.

James stopped chewing on the large bite he had in his mouth and looked up, perturbed. "Are you quoting Shakespeare my young friend?" Marcus asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Dickens," he answered, swallowing his food.

"_Great Expectations_ or _A Tale of Two Cities?_" Marcus' laugh echoed throughout the kitchen.

"_Great Expectations_," James mumbled under his breath. He finished the rest of the food on his plate and leaned back stretching slightly.

"Seems to me like you could use some ice cream," Marcus suggested.

"Do we have any?" James asked.

"I'm sure we do, but you'll probably want to go into town to get some," he answered. "Perhaps you could show the young lady the best place to go."

James smirked at him. "You're alright, Marcus."

The air had grown slightly cooler as it usually did this close to the ocean and James had pulled on a pair of track pants with a comfy white t-shirt. He wandered slowly down the row of elaborate houses that were mostly dim, waiting for their families to liven them up at the end of the week. He reached the Swan house and rang the bell.

"Who could be calling at this hour?" he heard Mrs. Swan's voice inside. "Yes?" she said, impatiently as she opened the door. "Oh, James." Her tone changed immediately when she realized it was him. "Is there something I can help you with dear?"

"Good evening Mrs. Swan. I'm sorry to be coming by so late," he apologized.

"Oh it's only nine thirty," she said, waving him off.

"I was wondering if Isabella might be interested in getting some ice cream with me."

"Who's at the door, Mom?" He heard Isabella's voice as she came down the stairs her nose still in her book.

"It's James, dear. He's come to see if you'd like to get some ice cream," she informed her daughter with a smile.

Bella appeared next to the door wearing a pink pair of dance pants with a white racer back tank top and her hair pulled up adorably into a messy bun. James thought she looked so cozy all he wanted to do was cuddle up with her and forget everything else. He shook his head quickly trying to get rid of the thought.

_Stop being such a pussy_, he said to himself.

Bella glanced at him for a moment pursing her lips. "Alright," she finally answered. "Let me go put on some shoes."

James waited in the entry way at the bottom of the stairs and felt mesmerized as Isabella came bouncing back down them.

"So what brought this on?" Bella asked as they began walking down the street.

"Well, I was in the mood for ice cream and I realized you don't know the area very well and thought I'd be generous and bring you with me."

"It was a nice thought," she said, smiling sweetly at him. "Thank you."

"Have you seen the movie for _Great Expectations_?" he asked.

"Yes, I wasn't impressed," she answered, honestly.

"What's your favorite movie?" he asked and found that he really did want to know.

"Cruel Intentions," she said and he laughed a little bit.

"I could see that about you," he said. "Ruthless bitch gets what she deserves and the innocent girl takes off in the car."

Bella made a face before responding. "Actually, I was rooting for Sarah Michelle Gellar's character."

"Really?" he asked, surprised.

"I was really hoping that at the end it would have all been a huge set up by the two of them and he'd come out from somewhere," she paused for a moment. "Each time I watch it, I keep hoping the ending will change."

"And has it?"

"Not yet," she said, smiling up at him. "What about you?"

"Well, I tell everyone that it's Fight Club," he answered.

"Complete guy flick." She nodded and then added, "You said that's what you tell everyone…"

"In truth, I'm pretty partial to The Count of Monte Cristo." Only his closest friends knew that and he was surprised that he had just given her the information.

"Excellent movie," she agreed. "Although I never understood how anyone didn't realize the son was Edmond's."

"Me too!" His eyes lit up as he continued, "the kid looked just like him! I was like really are you blind or something?"

"I guess that's why it's a movie," she said, laughing and he joined her.

"Nana's?" Bella questioned as they walked up to the ice cream shop.

"Hey, don't mock," James scolded her. "Nana's makes the best ice cream you'll ever have and she makes tons of flavors."

"Is Nana still alive then?" she asked as they walked in, the little bell above the door chiming cheerfully.

"No, she past on about three years back, but her daughter runs the place now and it's still just as good."

Nana's wasn't a big shop, but it wasn't small either. There was a long counter that over looked the tubs of ice cream and miscellaneous ice cream gadgets all along the back wall. There were about three booths on either side of the door decorated in blue and white checkered pattern. There was a fifties feel to the place, but everything gleamed as if it had just been put in. Framed posters of older ice cream ads lined the walls along with antique ice cream makers. James loved Nana's and had since the first time his dad had brought him in. That was back in the day though, before the yoga instructors and secretaries that now took up his father's time.

"What would you like?" he asked, motioning to the wall behind the counter that displayed all the different kinds of ice cream Nana's offered.

"Strawberry," Bella replied without taking time to look over all the flavors.

"Strawberry?" he asked, giving her an odd look. Bella ignored him as the lady behind the counter began to assemble her ice cream.

"And for you, sugar?" the older lady behind the counter asked him after handing Emerson her strawberry ice cream.

"Espresso fudge pie," he answered with a smile.

"So what's in that anyways?" Bella asked as they began the walk back.

"Coffee cinnamon flavored ice cream with espresso fudge pie mix and a swirl of fudge," he answered, taking a bite.

"Sounds like you've got too much crap in there to me," Bella said.

"Well, I guess I couldn't expect a strawberry girl to understand."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Bella's annoyance was painted all over her face.

"You like strawberry because it's simple and old school. Not a lot of mystery and you can count on it to never change."

"I guess that explains why you got what you did as well," she replied.

"How so?"

"You had to get a lot of different things, because you can never just decide and take part in one thing," she explained.

"Touché," he replied, taking another bite.

"There's something comforting about strawberry though, don't you think?" she asked, looking up at him. "Like it takes you back to when things were easy and you didn't have much to worry about." She looked lost in thought for a moment before she continued on. "Like not getting that scoop of ice cream before bed was the end of the world."

"You've got a point." James remembered how he and his dad used to get vanilla when he first brought him here. Simple, classic, the thought of something lost long ago.

"You can never go wrong with classic vanilla son," he'd told him.

"Do you want a bite?" she asked, stopping and turning towards him. He glanced down meeting her eyes and didn't take his gaze away from them as he licked her cone.

"It is comforting," he acknowledged with a shy smile.

"And messy too apparently," she said, swiping her finger across his nose and wiping off some ice cream.

"My nose is sticky now!" he complained.

"Come here," she motioned with her finger and he bent to her level. She lightly brought her lips to his nose and kissed it. "Better?" She stared softly back at him with a small smile.

"Much." He smiled back and took her hand as they continued to walk.

* * *

Marcus was in the kitchen flipping through one of his chef magazines when James arrived home.

"Marcus, my man, you are a genius!" James tossed a container of pralines and cream to him.

"How old is this?" Marcus asked, opening the container wearily.

"Chill man, I went back and got it after I dropped her off."

"Thank you then," he said pulling out a spoon. "How did it go with the young lady?"

"Quite well I think," James nodded. "At least I wasn't quoting this time."

"You kiss her?" he asked.

"She kissed me," he replied, cockily.

Marcus raised his eyebrows, "Really?"

"On the nose," James admitted, letting the wind out of his sails.

"So the plot thickens." Marcus laughed as he made his way to his quarters. James turned and trudged up the stairs pulling his shirt over his head as he went.

James' room faced the ocean and he looked out over the calm sands listening to the waves roll in. He thought about Isabella and lightly touched his nose smiling to himself.

Glancing down on the side of the house, he noticed a couple bikes his family had purchased last summer and an idea struck him. He quickly ran back down stairs and left a note for Marcus to find in the morning.

He was staring out onto the water again before deciding to turn in for the night. Just before he turned, he noticed a light flicker onto the sand a little ways down. He couldn't help but wonder if Isabella had the same room he did and if that was her light.

* * *

Present day

"So, tell me about the new girl." Emmett slid under the bar and placed his hands in his most capable grip. Edward stepped behind his head and mirrored his hands over the bar.

"I don't really know anything about her," Edward replied as Emmett pushed the weight up.

"Bullshit," Emmett growled out as he pushed the bar up again.

"No bullshit." Edward shook his head at him.

"Dude, she's fucking living with you and since I know the only vacant room in your house is the one across from yours," he paused, pushing the bar up again, "you're also sharing a bathroom with her."

"She just got here yesterday and was in bed by the time I got home last night and gone by the time I got up this morning," Edward told him honestly.

"Well, your families go way back right? Otherwise she wouldn't be staying with you," Emmett observed. "So, you must've met her before."

"I think we spent one summer together when we were six or some shit," he answered, becoming slightly annoyed.

"What good is it to have the new hottie staying with my best friend if he doesn't know shit about her?" Emmett groaned, setting the bar back in place and sitting up.

"My apologies for being of no use to your attempt to get laid," Edward returned as they switched spots.

"That's right bitch, you should apologize." Emmett grinned.

"Take some of these weights off will ya? Ya damn gorilla." Edward nodded to the weights on the end of the bar. Edward could bench as well as the next guy, but no one in the school could press as much as Emmett McCarty.

"Well well, look who it is," Emmett sang as James entered the weight room.

"Sup?" James nodded to his two friends before picking up a couple free weights.

"We're just talking bout the new girl," Emmett quickly filled him in while James did his best not to scowl in response. All anyone was talking about today was Isabella Swan and it was the one subject he did not want to discuss. "She's hot right?" Emmett grinned.

"She's alright." James shrugged.

"Alright enough for the first fuck of the summer it seems," Edward observed remembering the conversation prior to the bet.

"Yeah," James responded noncommittally.

"So, what's the story then Evans?" Emmett asked, excited for the sordid details.

"I hit it and quit it." James shrugged. "She's no different from any other piece of ass."

"She's not, huh?" Edward asked, somewhat amused.

"No, Ed," James stressed his name, "she's not."

"It's Edward, prick," Edward corrected; he couldn't stand it when people shortened his name and his friends knew it. "And if she's no different, why do you look all tense?"

"What the fuck, man, you turning into a chick or something reading my body language?" James asked annoyed. "And why the hell do you care if I look stressed?"

Edward shrugged in response his patented smirk taking over his face. "I'm just saying that the Evans I used to know never looked this stressed after lunchtime head," he returned before heading off to the other side of the room. James watched him walk off with an angry expression on his face.

"Come on James," Emmett said, stepping up beside him. "What's the real story?"

"That is the real story," he growled putting the weights back and trudging away.

* * *

Bella and Alice sat next to each other in the school's grand dance studio surrounded by the other girls on the dance team and watching their reflections in the many mirrors as they stretched their long limbs. Alice had on black dance pants with a bright pink scarf tied around her waist that matched the pink tips on the ends of her hair. Her rainbow colored top stopping slightly above her belly button.

"Shopping in kids again I see," a tall blond with extremely long legs said to Alice as she brought her leg up behind her head.

Bella looked shocked that anyone had dared to speak to Alice that way. It was the first sign of disrespect she had seen given to her new friends all day.

Alice smirked slightly before replying. "And Dr. Hale did a fabulous job sucking all the fat out of your ass before school started again." The girl's face fell as her leg dropped back down. "Please, tell me," Alice said continuing, "how does one recover so quickly from having thirty pounds of fat removed?"

Bella stifled a giggle at Alice's retort and then continued to stretch out her ankles. Alice flitted her way over to the stereo to pick out the music for this afternoon's class when she was joined by Jessica and Lauren, two girls who had been on the dance team with her since freshman year.

"What's with the new girl?" Jessica asked, hopping up onto the table the stereo was sitting on.

"I'm putting her on the team," Alice replied, annoyed that she had to explain herself.

"I thought we didn't take on any newbies unless they were exceptional freshman?" Lauren asked with her hands on her hips.

"She is quite exceptional," Alice returned, still annoyed as Jessica started swinging her legs. "Get your fat ass off the table before you make it collapse."

Jessica glared angrily in response. "I. Do not. Have. A fat ass," she said hopping down all the same.

"I don't know Jes," Lauren said, tilting her head to glance around Alice. "I think all those croissants in France added a little too much."

Jessica threw her friend a scowl and turned back to Alice. "So, the new girl?" she asked again.

Alice turned around to face the two of them. "I'm captain and it's my decision. So, you can take your places on the ends in the first line and shut up, or you can dance in the last row for the whole year." Alice smirked at the scared looks on their faces.

It was no secret that Lauren planned on getting a dancing scholarship and knew she would never be seen if she was dancing in the back row. She dropped her complaint and walked off to her position. Jessica knew she had no ground to stand on and began to walk away as well.

"Oh and Jessica." Alice leaned over the table waiting for Jessica to turn and face her. "You might want to sign up for some extra hip-hop classes to dance off your little problem there before competition season starts." Alice smiled an almost genuine smile which increased Jessica's anger even more. Bella had to laugh at the whole exchange. Alice was a tiny little thing, but you definitely didn't want to mess with her.

* * *

"So tell me again how were getting home," Bella asked Alice as they made their way out of the dance studio and across the empty parking lot.

Alice rolled her eyes and shifted her bag onto her shoulder. "J and Emmett have football practice the same time we have dance. As long as they're not participating in any extracurriculars, we'll be home right on time," Alice explained.

"Extracurriculars?" Bella asked, scrunching her eyebrows together. "Like James' lunch time activities?" _Ugh James_, she thought, even saying the name made her want to retch.

"Yeah," Alice said, a small smile playing on her thin lips. "Something like that." She motioned to the red and yellow skirts lined up along the chain link fence where the players were beginning to emerge from the locker room.

J walked straight up to them ignoring all the freshman and sophomores trying to get his attention. "So, doll," he said, staring intently at Bella. "You gonna let me give you a ride home?"

"Um, I think I'm going to pass today," she said, looking at him coyly.

"Prefer to walk?" he asked arrogantly.

"No." A small smile played on her lips as Emmett joined them. "Say Emmett," she said running her hand along his muscular arm. He looked down at her and smiled, his dimples prominent.

"What can I do for you?" he asked, his brilliant blue eyes dancing.

"I was wondering," she began, not taking her hand off his arm, "if you'd mind giving me a ride?"

"Honey," he said, running a finger down her taut stomach, "You can ride me anytime you want." Jasper rolled his eyes and began focusing on some of the girls that were still along the fence.

"Don't even think about it." Alice lightly slapped his face and brought his attention to her. "I most certainly will not be walking." She smirked as she handed him her bag.

"Alright pixie girl," he said and swung her over his shoulder, "it's you and me." He tipped Emmett a small salute and headed for his Dodge Viper in the stadium parking lot.

"So how about that ride?" Bella asked him, coyly.

Emmett hoisted his football bag higher up onto his shoulder and slid his left arm around Bella's waist. "You know, normally I'm all for a quick ride with a pretty new face," he admitted, looking at her seriously now. "Something tells me I might just want to wait a little while for your sweet little ass."

Bella smirked and slapped his chest gently. "All I'm asking for is a ride in your car, home," she said still smirking. "As for any other type of ride, why don't we just play it by ear?"

"Music to my ears." He opened the door of his Porsche Cayenne Turbo and helped her inside before tossing his gear in the back.

* * *

There was a light knock on the door frame of Edward's room and he looked up to see Bella standing in his doorway. She stood there barefoot, but still in her school skirt and had removed her crisp white shirt to reveal a stretchy lace camisole that barely covered her breasts.

"Yes?" he asked, looking at her expectantly.

"I think you owe me an apology Eddie."

She stepped lightly into the room and shut the door behind her. She leaned against the door with her arms tucked behind her. Her highlighted hair was a sexy mess all over her shoulders and he thought of all the things he could do to apologize, though he couldn't remember what he was apologizing for. Edward lifted himself from his bed and stalked over to her putting hands on either side of her like she had done that afternoon to him.

"What, pray tell, am I apologizing for?" he asked, smiling cockily down at her.

"For showing my panties to the whole school." She looked up at him innocently. "I told you," her voice was almost a whisper as she ran a finger down his now bare chest. Funny, he didn't remember taking his shirt off. "If you wanted to see, you should've just asked." She hooked her finger in the top of his khakis. "I think," she said, smiling up at him and pushing lightly toward the bed, "that since you saw mine, it's only fair that I get to see yours." She had him backed against the bed.

"Fair's only fair right?" He grazed her neck with his lips. She bit her lip and nodded up at him. He unbuttoned his pants and unzipped them letting them pool around his ankles before kicking them away. She let her gaze wander down his bare chest to the bulge in his silk emerald green boxers.

"Aw," she said, gazing up at him with adoration. "You match all the way down."

"You misunderstood though," he said, running a finger down her spine and resting on the top of her skirt.

"Oh?" She looked up at him with faux curiosity.

"I didn't get to see yours." He placed a chaste kiss at the nape of her neck.

"Fair's only fair though, right?" she asked, looking up at him biting her lip.

"Right," he agreed, pulling down the zipper on the back of her skirt.

It slid easily down her smooth legs and fell to the floor. Edward took one look at the white lace undergarment she was wearing and lifted her hips to his waist as he sat back on the bed. He felt her warmth over the thin material of his boxers and began kissing her in earnest. He slid his hands over her bottom and began to slide a finger inside the front of her panties, feeling the soft lace against his hand.

"Oh Eddie," she said breathlessly, "touch me. Please," she begged. "Touch me Eddie. Touch me Eddie! Eddie!" She shouted as his finger slid to the inside of her thigh.

Right before he touched her warmth, he sat bolt right up in bed, catching his alarmed expression in the mirror over his dresser. After he had his breathing under control, he sank back into the navy pillows on his bed and pulled the matching comforter up.

_Eddie?_

He thought, wondering where the name had come from. No one called him Eddie. Everyone called him Edward, even his closest friends only called him Ed to piss him off.

_Eddie?_

He couldn't wrap his head around it. He rubbed his eyes with his palms and glanced at his alarm clock. _3:23_, it read, the green numbers lighting up his dark room.

_Eddie_, he thought again before rolling back over to try to go back to sleep.

* * *

**AN: Reviews are love and they'll get you a preview of the next chapter. Thanks for reading!**


	3. Chapter 3

All recognizeable characters are property of Stephanie Meyer and the author makes no financial gains from using them. I just like to make them spoiled little rich kids.

This story will bounce back and forth between the present time (senior year) and the summer before. Please do not hesitate to PM me with any questions you may have.

Big thanks to Kaila for betaing this for me.

Thank you to those of you who have added my story to your favorites or alerts, I really hope you enjoy it. The first several chapters should post pretty quick, but they may start to slow down after chapter 10. Thanks for reading!

* * *

A puff of steam preceded Bella's entrance back into her bedroom. She towel dried her hair as she looked around her new room again. Mrs. Cullen had certainly tried to make everything to her liking, or had asked her staff to. The comforter on the large mahogany bed was a deep green with black flowers embroidered all over it. There were tons of pillows that adorned the head of the bed, but it still seemed cozy instead of overly decorated.

She dropped the towel on the seat in front of the matching mahogany vanity that took up the majority of the wall next to the bed and grabbed the bottle of strawberry lotion and began applying it to her legs with vigor. Every item of Bella's toiletries was strawberry scented, from her shampoo and conditioner to her lotions and sprays. She knew she wasn't one of those girls who needed gobs and gobs of extra scent, but she couldn't bear her normal lilac scent and went to great lengths to cover it up. Her interaction with J this morning had proved to her that her efforts were working.

She picked up the towel and hung it and her robe on the bathroom door before slipping into her pajamas. The carpet was soft under her feet as she padded out onto the patio. Bella had expected a massive, several story house when her mother had described the Cullen home, so she had been surprised when it was all one level; the vastness of the home more than made up for it only being a single story though. The cool breeze made her shiver a little and she realized that summer was truly gone. She wasn't used to the season changing so early. Back home she could be quite comfortable in short skirts until late November, but it was becoming quickly evident that winter would be here sooner than she'd expected.

Bella rubbed her arms quickly as she walked back inside, closing the doors behind her and sliding the curtains into place. Her mind was racing a mile a minute with different thoughts of the summer and her new school. She grabbed a book from the shelf hoping to calm her thoughts. She was amazed that everything had already been unpacked when she'd gotten here, but she was instantly grateful to see all her books proudly on display. She flipped off the over head light so that the only light came from her bedside lamp. Tossing back the covers, she slid into the silky soft sheets, resting amongst the pillows.

_It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness_. She read the immortal words of Charles Dickens. Bella scooted further under the covers, snuggling, pulling the comforter up to her neck. Her eyes quickly grew heavy and her dreams were filled with someone else quoting Dickens' eternal words.

* * *

_June 29__th_

James awoke early the next morning and was surprised at how relaxed and rested he felt given the early hour. Normally during the summer he needed to sleep until noon or later to feel rested enough to get out of bed. Then again, the majority of the summer was normally spent hanging out with the guys until the early hours of the morning, getting drunk on whoever's parents' stash at whichever house they happened to be partying at that night. It was an unspoken agreement in his circle that the parents didn't say anything about their alcohol consumption as long as they didn't make a spectacle of themselves in the process.

James took a run along the beach enjoying the still morning air and smiled to himself as he passed Isabella's house on the way back. After a quick shower, he made his way downstairs for breakfast. His mother greeted him with a friendly hello and offered her cheek for him to kiss, which he obliged before sitting down. Marcus placed a plate of French toast in front of him as they exchanged a knowing glance.

"See darling, this is the appropriate time for French toast," she said as she took a small bite of her grapefruit. He nodded to her, but said nothing. "Marcus tells me you've asked him to pack a lunch for you." She eyed him curiously.

"I planned on biking up the hill today," he said, trying not to give much away.

"Yes, that sounds lovely." She smiled and he knew there was more coming. "I told Marcus that was way too much food for just one person though, even a growing boy like yourself."

"Where's Dad?" he asked, attempting to change the subject. James did not talk to his mother about girls and he certainly never talked to her about ones he was interested in. They barely spoke of the female friends in his group unless her parents were brought up first.

"Scheduling a yoga class," she answered with a wave of her hand. "Don't try to change the subject. I happen to know that the only family currently on the beach with someone your age is the Swan family." She looked uncertain for a minute. "Unless you're suddenly wooing town girls?"

"No. No Mom," he assured her, quickly wiping his mouth on his cloth napkin.

"So it is the Swan girl then," she said, shooting him a smile.

He decided to give in before this got too much more painful. "Yes mother, I am taking Isabella up the hill and I thought we could have lunch," he admitted.

"Ah, she does have a name," she trilled. "See was that so painful?"

"Was what painful?" his father asked finally joining him. Marcus immediately set a plate down in front of Mr. Evans along with the morning paper.

"Hopefully not your yoga class," James grumbled. His father shot him a look and he decided not to press with anymore comments.

"James has a date with the Swan girl," his mother informed his father, still smiling.

"I didn't say it was a date," James replied, irritated.

"You're taking her somewhere and there's food," his mother reminded him. "That's a date."

"Swan…" his father trailed off in thought. "Nice enough family I suppose. It's too bad you couldn't hit it off with the McAllister girl; now that's a good family."

"Geoffrey!" his mother admonished, "James can date whomever he wishes."

"Except a townie of course," James replied, smiling at her sweetly. His mother made her way out of the kitchen, satisfied with the information she had pulled from her son.

"Townies are only good for one thing son," his father said without looking up.

"Being on their knees," James finished for him and they exchanged a knowing smile.

* * *

James knocked lightly on the door and Mrs. Swan answered in a tennis outfit.

"Oh, hello, James," she said inviting him in. "I'm afraid Bella's not up yet." She turned and smiled at him, indicating for him to follow her into the kitchen. "Marta was just about to take her breakfast up, but you could do it if you'd like," she said as she eyed him as if he were a lollipop. "Unless you'd like to come help me work on my backstroke."

James smirked to himself, _Yup she was just like all the other mothers_. He shook his head. "No, but thank you. I'll just take this up to her," he said, lifting the tray.

"Up the stairs at the end of the hall on your left," she called after him.

_Ah, so she does have the same room I do_, he thought as he wandered down the hall.

He carefully set the tray down on the desk that looked out over the ocean and thought that she had probably sat here just last night. The room was decorated in white and pale yellows and he smiled as he watched her sleeping under a billowy white comforter. She had a four post chestnut bed with white gossamer netting draped over it.

He sat on the bed gently and lay onto his side as he gently nudged her hip with his finger. She made an annoyed groan so he persisted, nudging her a little more forcefully. She rolled over towards him and he was engulfed with the scent of lilacs.

"Wake up duchess," he said with his hand still on her hip. She opened her eyes slightly and rubbed them clearing out the morning sun.

"Duchess?" she asked, still asleep.

"Princess is too common," he said in explanation.

"What're you doing here?" she asked, rolling all the way towards him and snuggling into her covers a little more.

"Someone had to bring you your breakfast." He motioned to the tray on the desk. She turned to look at it and then turned back to him.

"Marta could've done that," she said, calling his bluff.

"I didn't want to help your mom with her stroke?" he asked trying again.

"Ah, but for that request you would have needed to be here to begin with." She smiled through her sleep haze at him and he knew he'd been caught. "So, tell me why you're really here." He idly began playing with the edge of her pillow case as he thought about how to respond.

"I thought maybe you'd like to go on a ride up the hill with me," he offered.

"Depends," she said, covering her mouth as she yawned.

"On?"

"What kind of car do you drive?"

"I'm surprised you care," he told her.

"I don't, I just figured that was the kind of thing I was supposed to ask," she smiled, sitting up.

"Most of the females I know would," he agreed. "We're not driving though; I thought we'd take bikes."

"I don't have one here." She reached for the muffin on her tray and began picking it apart with her fingers.

"Good thing I brought a spare then," he returned, smiling and shook his head as she offered him a bite.

"Do I have time for a quick shower?" she asked, popping another piece in her mouth. James watch the way her mouth moved as she chewed and found himself wanting to kiss her again.

"A quick one," he allowed. She tossed the covers off of her and made her way to the bathroom that was connected to her room.

"Oh, James." She peeked her head back out of the bathroom. He looked up in response. "I'm not like any of the girls you know," she said with a sultry smile and closed the door.

"No, you definitely are not," he agreed.

* * *

The ride to the top of the hill took about an hour and they were grateful for the light breeze that blew down on them. Several times James caught himself staring at Isabella. She had donned a light white sundress and it sailed around her like scarves. James chuckled remembering the look on her face when she came out of the shower and he was still sitting on her bed.

"Um, I kind of need to get dressed here," she said, hinting that he should leave.

"I don't mind." He smirked at her and shrugged. She had grabbed her clothes and wandered back into the bathroom and he had laughed to himself for a minute before he got a face full of the towel that she had thrown out of the bathroom at him. _Ah_, he'd thought inhaling deeply, _lilacs_.

"What's so funny?" Bella asked, bringing him back to the present.

"Oh, I was just thinking about when you came out of the bathroom this morning," he said.

"I'll get you back for that," she threatened as he slowed his bike.

"I'm looking forward to it." He smirked at her as she stopped beside him. They left the bikes and he grabbed her hand, leading her to the edge of the cliff. For the first time that he could ever remember, James did not look out over the amazing view. Instead he found himself watching Isabella. Her face went from slightly frightened at being on the edge, to amazed and then serene. James gazed at her intently feeling each emotion with her.

"It's beautiful," she whispered.

There were some rough rocks below them where the ocean had slowly worn them down over time, and the ocean crashed against the side of the cliff emitting a spray that almost reached the top. The water beyond met the horizon and was dotted with little boats. Every now and again, a dolphin or some other water animal would pop out of the water. Bella tugged lightly on James' arm and he turned to her. She stood on her toes and he leaned towards her slightly.

She lightly pressed her lips to his cheek and whispered. "Thank you."

James was amazed at how much that small gesture meant to him. He spread out the blanket he had brought and laid down motioning for Isabella to do the same. She positioned herself next to him, but slightly lower to where her head reached only his chest. James brought his arm behind his head and looked up towards the sky.

After lying in silence for awhile, Bella finally spoke up. "What're we doing?"

"Don't you ever just look at the clouds?" he asked her, feeling more at peace than he had in a long time.

"Not normally." She shrugged before bringing her gaze to the sky.

"When I was younger, my nanny would bring me up here and let me fly kites until lunch time. Afterwards, she would insist that I needed a nap. I always protested and she would eventually tell me that I didn't have to fall asleep as long as I'd lie here at least an hour and look at the clouds," he told her. "The catch was, I wasn't allowed to talk."

"Were you a talkative kid?" she asked, enjoying hearing about his childhood.

"I never shut up." He laughed.

"It was probably her way of getting some peace and quiet," Bella murmured before laughing lightly.

"I imagine it was," he agreed. "Sometimes I would lose track of time because I got so engrossed in the clouds."

"Why?" she asked, curious.

"I'd start making up what shapes they were and then I'd make up stories about them," he admitted, not feeling embarrassed at all.

"Tell me one," she requested quietly.

"Come here." He reached for her and spun her so that her head was resting on his stomach.

"That's a lot easier on my neck," she admitted. James smiled to himself enjoying the warmth of her head on his body.

"See that one right there?" He pointed to a cloud. "See how it kind of looks like a skull in a way?" He felt her nod and continued on. "Do you see that other cloud over there that kind of looks like a squiggly line, and its moving kind of slowly."

"Yes," she said after spotting the cloud.

"Well, I would make up a story about how the skull was haunting the snake and that the snake was trying to get away. That's why it looks like it's moving."

Bella smiled. "That's not a very interesting story," she said, putting her arm up and twisting her hair around her fingers.

"I didn't say they were interesting," he admitted and began running his fingers over her arm unconsciously. "I just said I made things up."

"True," she admitted.

They continued to lie there quietly just looking up to the sky. James thought of how different it was to be with Isabella than all the other girls he knew. The majority of the time it was difficult to just get them off the beach, let alone to just watch clouds. Bella let out a content sigh as James ran the back of his fingers over her cheek. Her skin was so smooth; he couldn't get enough of just touching it.

Bella reached lazily for her bag and began pulling something out.

"Done with Dickens already?" James asked, noticing the different cover of the book she had just pulled out.

"No." She handed the book to him. "This one's for you."

"Ender's Game," he read the title aloud as she pulled another book from her bag. "What makes you think I want to read this?"

"I just thought you might enjoy it is all." She settled herself against him again and opened her book.

"What even makes you think I read?"

"I think you could probably read more than just the sports section of the news paper if you tired." She laughed lightly.

"How do you know that's all I read?" Her astuteness continued to amaze him.

"Call it a hunch." She smiled and began reading.

_What could it hurt?_ He thought, she'd been patient enough to gaze at clouds for the last two hours, he could read.

* * *

James got so engrossed in the book that he completely forgot about the picnic he'd brought with them until his stomach started grumbling.

"I think its feeding time for the humans." Bella laughed as she put her bookmark into her book and placed it back in her bag.

"Seems so," he agreed and got up to retrieve the basket. Marcus had really out done himself; there were several different kinds of cheeses, a couple different rolls of bread and various types of meats. He had also included strawberries, blue berries, tangerines, and a bunch of lilacs for ambiance. James laughed as he pulled the lilac bunch out.

_How does he always know this shit?_ He wondered to himself. Lastly he pulled out a light blush wine and a couple glasses.

"Wine?" Bella asked, raising her eyebrow. "Are you trying to get me drunk Mr. Evans?"

"Ew," he said, scrunching his face. "Please don't say 'Mr. Evans' like that. It makes me think of my father's secretaries."

Bella eyed him apologetically. "I'm sorry, do you not like them?"

"Not as much as he does," he answered without looking up.

"Ah," she replied and began helping him set things out onto plates.

"So, what do you think of the book so far?" she asked after they had tasted several of the cheeses.

"I find it interesting," he admitted.

"What part?" she asked as she picked up the bunch of lilacs, bringing them to her nose. James smirked at her; the lilac scent was going to overpower him if he wasn't careful.

"The number of children couples are allowed to have particularly," he said.

"Really?" She scrunched her eyebrows together.

"A lot of the families in our circle only have one child or a boy and a girl."

"Ah," she said, making the connection.

"Yeah, I do have this one friend who is the third child with an older brother and an older sister," he told her.

"Well, I can see why you'd find that aspect interesting, but a lot of families are like that, with the one boy and one girl thing," she said.

"No. The interesting part is that his older brother," he popped a strawberry into his mouth, "is a total ass."

"Is the older sister extremely sweet?" she asked.

"She was." He offered her a strawberry. She opened her mouth and he placed it in, touching her lips softly. She smiled sweetly at him.

"Was?" she asked after finishing the strawberry.

"Let's just say that people change as they grow up in my world." Bella couldn't place his tone, but it almost sounded wistful.

"Everyone changes as they grow up," she said, rubbing his hand.

"Normally for the better though." Bella touched his face hoping to reassure him. "I feel bad for my friend though," he said, looking down. "His parents constantly belittle him for not being on the same page as his siblings. When he didn't run for class president in the sixth grade, I seriously thought his parents were going to blow a gasket."

"How awful for him," Bella acknowledged.

"He takes it pretty well though," James said. "He never compares himself to them or lets his parents' issues weigh on him."

"Good for him," she said.

"Good?" James asked raising an eyebrow. "It's bloody amazing to be honest." He continued eating, thinking about it a little more. "Even though the majority of us can't stand our parents and think low of their activities, doing something that makes them think less of us or not succumbing to the things that are expected of us, is practically unheard of."

"Sounds like your friend's a notch above the rest of you then." Bella smirked, sniffing the lilacs again.

"Only in that aspect." He laughed and shook his head.

"So, what else do you have planned for this afternoon?" Bella asked after they had cleaned up their lunch.

"Cliff diving?" He nodded to the edge. Bella looked at the edge and back to him with a horrified expression. "I was kidding," he quickly reassured her, placing a hand on her shoulder and leaving it there. "I actually didn't have much else planned. We can go back if you'd like." The sadness in his tone was not lost on her.

"Do you play cards?" she asked, grabbing for her bag again.

"What kind?"

"Gin?" She pulled a deck of cards from her bag.

"What else do you have in there?"

"I like to be prepared." She shrugged.

"You must've been a boy scout in a previous life." He chuckled.

James quickly caught on to the game, but couldn't seem to win a single hand.

"Gin," she said, smugly laying down her cards.

"I swear you cheat," he grumbled as he began shuffling the cards again.

"I do no such thing," she answered, offended. After losing three more hands, James had decided he'd had enough.

"That's where I draw my limit." He shook his head in defeat. "You have to play poker with me tonight," he informed her as they began picking up.

"Oh no, I get to decide on the event tonight," she said as they walked back to the bikes.

"So I get to see you tonight then?" he asked, suddenly relieved.

"I think that's an option." She gazed at him from the corner of her eye.

"Well, since you were such a good sport about my little outing, I guess I can concede tonight to you," he agreed as they peddled down the hill.

"How very gracious of you," she replied sarcastically.

* * *

_Present Day_

Bella stood at the center island of the kitchen taking in the vastness around her. It continued to amaze her at how large the homes of this area were. Her family had always been well off, but for some reason they were never as showy about it. They had lived in one of the nicer homes in Phoenix, but nothing as extravagant as the Cullens' home or any of the other homes she'd visited since coming here.

She found the major differences between the people here and the people back home oddly disconcerting. She didn't understand the arrogance and entitlement that these people exuded, but she was one of them now and was still adjusting to acting as such. She chewed a bite of her Cinnamon Toast Crunch thoughtfully as she scratched the back of her leg with the toe of her shoe. She had to admit that shopping with Alice certainly had its perks.

Edward watched the way the toe of her ridiculously high shoe rubbed on the back of her calf before following the line up her leg to the bottom of her skirt.

"So people do still do that," Edward observed, making his presence known.

"Do what?" Bella asked her mouth full before swallowing. "Eat?"

"Eat cereal," he clarified, coming to a stop across the island from her. Bella glanced down into the mostly empty coffee cup in front of her and shrugged.

"Is cereal below you?" She quirked eyebrow at him.

"Normally, we're supposed to have something healthier," he replied.

"What, like French toast?" she asked, inwardly cringing at her own words.

"Or something like that," Edward feigned disinterest. "Are you about ready?" He pulled his keys from his pocket and made a show of looking at them.

"For what?" Bella asked before taking another bite.

"School?" Edward asked, rolling his eyes in response.

"Oh, is Kate here? I didn't hear her horn." Bella quickly swallowed the last couple bites of her cereal before taking the cup to the sink and rinsing it out, sticking it in the dishwasher. Edward watched curiously; he couldn't remember the last time he'd seen someone take care of their own dishes; it was practically a crime.

"Kate's running late, I told her you could ride with me." He shook his head. "You really aren't from around here, are you?" he added as she popped a piece of gum into her mouth to take care of the milk breath she was sure she had.

"What, cause I can wash my own dishes?" She wanted to roll her eyes at him but refrained. "Please don't mistake my lack of laziness for an inability to fit in." She walked past him and picked up her leather bag. Edward stared at her, dumbfounded at her words.

_Laziness,_ he thought to himself. _Is that what it was?_

"Are you coming or not?" Bella broke through his thoughts throwing a look over her shoulder.

"Just enjoying the view," he returned before brushing past her to pick up his own bag. Bella rolled her eyes this time before following him out.

* * *

Bella rolled her window down, enjoying the fresh smell of the soon to be autumn air. She leaned her head back into the seat just letting the wind blow across her face. Edward glanced over at her with amusement. He couldn't remember the last time he'd seen a female willingly deal with the wind knowing it could mess up their hair. Even Angela never rolled the windows down.

The serene look on her face made him smile in contentment too as he glanced back out to the road in front on him. His reverie was interrupted shortly after when he heard Bella adjusting in her seat. He looked over and watched as she pulled the white knee highs up her long legs. He had never understood the reason for those stupid things, that almost all the girls seemed to wear, but as his eyes once again followed the shape of her leg, he was convinced that the reason was merely to torture him. He adjusted slightly in his seat trying not to think of his dream from the night before.

Edward breathed a slight sigh of relief as he pulled through the familiar gates of Cromwell Academy and into the spot he'd been parking in since he could drive. Bella flashed him a quick smile before opening her door and climbing out. Edward caught the briefest glimpse of lace and groaned as the door shut.

Bella glanced quickly around, noticing James was nowhere to be found. Once she realized what she was doing, she mentally smacked herself, hating that he was the first person she looked for. She made her way over to Alice and Kate, hoping to distract herself.

"Love the shoes." Alice winked at her conspiratorially.

"Like we don't all know that you've been playing personal shopper," Kate responded. "Sorry I couldn't swing by this morning." Kate turned her gaze on Bella. "Garrett decided he needed to work out this morning." Bella returned Kate's knowing look and Alice just wrinkled her nose in response.

"Please, work outs should not be done on your back," Alice said.

"Who said we were on our backs?" Kate asked with a raised eyebrow.

"More than sit ups can be done on those benches." Bella laughed quietly.

"And at that angle...whoo!" Kate laughed back.

"And with that, I shall take my leave," Alice murmured before strutting off.

"What's her problem?" Bella asked, watching the crowd of students part as Alice made her way through them.

"She walked in on James getting blown yesterday and cringes anytime we bring up sex now," Kate explained.

"How long will that last?" Bella asked, doing her best to not think of James in the, err, arms of someone else.

"She'll be over it before Friday." Kate sighed. "Assuming there's no more run ins. Either that or she'll hook up with some random guy on his gym locker."

"Is that hygienic?" Bella asked as they headed into the school.

* * *

Visions of Bella on his lap from his dream the night before danced in Edward's head before quickly morphing into Bella on his lap in his car. He quickly got out and leaned against the door before his fantasies had the chance to continue.

"Aren't you full of color today?" Tanya noted, running her perfectly manicured fingers over his cheek. Edward shied slightly away from her touch but she didn't seem to notice. Tanya brought her hands to the loose ends of Edward's tie and began to loop them together.

"Stop it," he said, pushing her hands away.

"My, my, aren't we testy this morning," Tanya cooed in response, running her hands over his perfectly sculpted abs.

"Stop it," he growled at her, gripping her hands and glaring down at her. He wasn't in the mood for her games today, and if he was being honest with himself, it wasn't Tanya's hands he wanted on him.

"What's your problem?" she asked, looking mildly offended. "Perhaps someone hasn't been having their needs met." Tanya smirked as her hand wandered down the front of his trousers.

"Or maybe Angela is headed this way," he growled, but was instantly relieved for the excuse. Tanya snapped her hand back like she'd been electrocuted before running her hands quickly through her hair and tossing it over her shoulder.

"Morning, dear," Tanya smiled her fakest smile at Angela.

"You alright, Tan?" Angela asked, doing her best to sound concerned.

"Fine, why?" Tanya asked as she straightened her skirt.

"You just look a little fidgety," Angela responded with a shrug.

"We should head to class," Edward interrupted, slinging his arm around Angela's shoulders.

"See ya later, Tan." Angela waved over her shoulder.

"It's Tanya," Tanya growled to her back before heading in the other direction.


	4. Chapter 4

All recognizable characters are property of Stephanie Meyer and the author makes no financial gains from using them. I just like to make them spoiled little rich kids.

This story will bounce back and forth between the present time (senior year) and the summer before. Please do not hesitate to PM me with any questions you may have.

Big thanks to Kaila for betaing this for me.

Thank you to those of you who have added my story to your favorites or alerts, I really hope you enjoy it. The first several chapters should post pretty quick, but they may start to slow down after chapter 10. Thanks for reading!

* * *

"So, since Emmett got to give you a ride home yesterday, does that mean it's my turn today?" J asked as he slid into his seat behind Bella.

"What makes you think I have any interest in riding with you?" she returned, not even turning around.

"Because I am the hottest guy in school," he replied cockily. "Not to mention one of the best rides."

"Well, you'll have to excuse me if I have no interest in riding you," Bella said.

"But you don't deny that I'm the hottest guy in school," J noted.

"That would be all you heard." She laughed lightly.

"Really though," he said, leaning closer to her, finally causing her to turn. "Why can't I give you a ride home?"

"Honestly?" she asked with a sigh.

"Please," he stated, waiting.

"Because there's no dance today and Kate's already taking me home," she replied simply.

"How about tomorrow then?" J questioned, not missing a beat.

"I don't think so," Bella replied before attempting to face forward again.

"This is because I'm friends with James, isn't it?" he stated blatantly.

"Yes, and James is a dick," she replied in an annoyed tone.

"Dick? That's pretty crass speak for a lady." J smirked.

"_Désolé, James est une bite_," Bella said with a tight lipped smile.

Jasper let out a loud, boisterous laugh. "It does sound so much classier in French," he said, still laughing. "So the reason I can't take you home is because James is a dick?" he clarified.

"Pretty much." Bella nodded in confirmation.

"I could've sworn we discussed this yesterday, but I'll play," he said, more to himself than to her. "Don't you think it's a little hypocritical to judge me based on my friends?" He cocked an eyebrow at her. "I mean, you don't seem to be judging Emmett by the fact that he's friends with James."

"Emmett wasn't there," she stated, looking directly into his eyes.

"Haven't you ever heard the saying, 'Don't judge a book by its cover?'" he asked in return.

"Haven't you ever heard of 'birds of a feather?'" she responded. J opened his mouth to respond but the teacher called the class to order. He sighed and settled for staring at the back of Bella's head for the next hour.

* * *

"How goes the second day?" Kate asked as she swirled her spoon around in her yogurt cup.

"Same as the first." Bella shrugged in response.

"Nothing exciting?" Rosalie asked as Bella swirled her fry in the ketchup on her plate.

"Not really." She shrugged again, popping the fry into her mouth. "But I think things may be looking up," she added as something caught her eye. Rosalie and Kate both looked up and began searching for whatever she was looking at, but spied nothing. "How long 'til Angela shows up, you think?" Bella slowly got up from the table.

"She normally picks up a new book from the library before lunch, so probably another five minutes," Rosalie responded. "Why?"

"Payback," Bella answered with a gleam in her eye.

"Where's she going?" Alice asked, sitting down as Bella left the table.

"I don't know, but I think we're in for a show," Rosalie replied, watching Bella as she approached Emmett, J, and Edward. Bella stalked slowly up behind Edward silently telling Emmett not to say anything when he noticed her. She slipped her arms around Edward's waist lifting his blazer in the process.

"What the?" Edward exclaimed in surprise.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," Bella cooed into his ear.

"Is there, um, something I can help you with?" he asked, making no attempt to move her arms but unable to contain the surprise in his tone.

"I just keep thinking about yesterday," she whispered huskily into his ear as she slowly undid his belt. "I keep thinking of your hand on the back of my skirt." She breathed deeply and the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. "The way your hand felt on me." She licked the shell of his ear hoping it would be enough to distract him as she slid his zipper down and unbuttoned his pants. It seemed to do the trick as he tilted his head further towards her mouth.

"Yeah?" he asked as Emmett and J watched in amusement.

"I just keep thinking how much..." she trailed off.

"How much?" Edward asked, licking his lips in anticipation of her next words.

"How much fun it was going to be to get you back." She laughed, dropping his pants to the floor and stepping away so that everyone got a full view of not only his black boxer briefs, but also the very prominent erection he was sporting.

The laughter that immediately erupted around him pulled Edward out of the fantasy he had been letting himself get pulled into. "What the fuck?" he exclaimed, suddenly realizing that his pants were pooled around his ankles.

"Tanya wasn't lying," Bella noted, blatantly checking out his package.

"Tanya?" Emmett asked as Edward made a quick grab for his pants.

"You didn't really think the girls didn't tell each other about us, did you?" J said to Emmett, shooting Bella a quick look.

"What'd they tell you about me?" Emmett asked, looking quite cocky all of a sudden; obviously taking the bait J had offered him.

"They said that was something I'd need to try for myself." She smirked at him and he nodded in agreement, a smug smile plastered all over his face.

Edward stared at Bella not sure what to think, part of him was pissed that he had been humiliated in front of everyone, but another part of him knew he'd deserved it and found it incredibly hot that she'd gotten him back.

"We even now?" Edward asked, pressing his body against Bella's.

Bella's breath caught in her throat as his green eyes stared back into hers. She could feel his still very prominent erection against her stomach and she had to force herself to speak.

"For now," she replied before turning and walking back to the table where Rosalie, Alice, and Kate were doubled over in laughter.

* * *

_June 29__th__ continued _

At almost exactly nine o'clock, James was waiting at the foot of the deck stairs for Isabella. He had on a pair of navy track pants and a gray sweatshirt from Princeton. His dark blond hair blew in the wind, still slightly damp from his shower. James listened to the sound of the waves and marveled at how quiet it was for nine. All too soon the beach would be over crowded with drunk and loud teenagers and he would be amongst them.

He noticed Isabella's light shut off and listened for her as she came out onto the deck. Her dark brown hair hung strait around her shoulders blowing lightly in the breeze. She had on form fitting pair of black pants and a thin red tank top. He could see a slight pinkness to her skin from where she had gotten too much sun this afternoon. Under her right arm she carried a large comforter and her face lit up as she approached him.

"Can I carry that for you?" he asked politely.

"Thank you," she said, handing it to him. He put it under his right arm and then took her right hand in his left.

"What's the blanket for?" he asked casually as they walked down the beach a little ways.

"I thought we could look at stars," she said with a shy smile.

"Look at stars?" he asked snottily. "What are we twelve?"

"Oh, I see," she scoffed. "You'll spend all day looking at clouds, but someone asks you to look at stars and you make fun of them."

"Good point," he admitted and began spreading out the comforter where she had pointed.

They laid down on the blanket and situated themselves on their backs. James looked up at the stars trying to find something to say, but nothing came to him.

"Did you know you can have stars named after you?" he finally asked after some time.

"I've heard that," she acknowledged. "I think it would be neat, but at the same time, I believe that the majority of the stars belong to something greater and we shouldn't try to change them into something they aren't."

"What do you mean?" he asked, feeling like she was speaking in code.

"Well, there are a lot of old stories about how the stars and constellations came to be and what they represent."

"Tell me a story," he requested, rolling onto his side and gazing at her. She pursed her lips together in thought. "Come on," he begged slightly. "I told you a cloud story."

"Yeah, but it wasn't a very good one." She laughed. "I don't really remember them exactly," she said with a sad look.

"Do the best you can," he suggested. Bella continued looking to the sky for a bit before giving in.

"I vaguely remember this one story about the Gemini stars," she began. James eyed her in anticipation and she continued. "It's a Greek legend that Zeus had two sons, Castor and Pollux. Castor was mortal and Pollux was immortal. The legend says that they were so close that when Castor died, Pollux asked Zeus to share his immortality with his brother so they could stay together and Zeus transformed them into the Gemini constellation." James watched the way her eyes lit up as she spoke the legend and smiled seeing her so fascinated by something.

"Nothing like a good bromance," he said, laughing lightly. She shot him a small smile that lifted the corner of her mouth.

The breeze picked up as they laid there and soon Bella was shivering from the cool ocean air. "Here," James offered, pulling his sweatshirt off.

"Thanks, but you're gonna be cold now," she pointed out.

"I can remedy that," he said as she laid back down. He turned onto his side facing her and pulled her towards him. "Body heat," he whispered breathily into her surprised face.

"I guess that would work," she said, looking slightly frightened.

He didn't know whether it was the sweetness of her breath or the close proximity, but James couldn't suppress the growing urge to kiss her and find out if she tasted as good as she smelled. It almost seemed that Bella knew something was coming and was holding her breath. James stared longingly into her eyes and then lightly pressed his lips to hers.

They were soft and molded to his perfectly. She tasted even more amazing than she smelled. She returned his kiss with fervor and pressed her hands against his chest needing to touch as much of him as possible. He trailed kisses along her neck and up to her ears wanting to kiss all the skin he could find. Her body molded perfectly to his and he felt oddly calm holding her body against his. They breathed deeply staring at each other for a moment before smiling as if they were the only ones in on a very big secret.

"I guess I can add that to my list of ways on how to keep warm," she said in light joking tone.

"There's only one problem with adding that to your list though," he told her, not taking his eyes off her.

"What's that?" she asked as she lightly kissed him again.

"It'll only work with me," he said, smiling as he kissed her again.

* * *

_Present Day_

James spent the entire lunch period under the bleachers with the cutest girl in the sophomore class, but still left for fifth period feeling oddly unfulfilled. This was normal back to school protocol: cute girl under the bleachers, a little extracurricular activity, and then off to fifth period feeling nice and relaxed.

It hadn't worked so far though and he'd even missed most of fifth period the day before but still felt extremely tense; as unfortunately, his friends had noticed.

_Advanced physics_, he thought with a sigh as he strutted down the hall. He flashed his million dollar smile to the girls who made no attempt to hide their ogling before turning into the lab room and searching for an empty seat. James was amazed at how full the room seemed to be.

_One last ditch effort at impressing the ivies_, he thought bitterly. Anyone knew that one advanced placement physics class was not going to make a difference this late into their high school careers, but it never seemed to stop them.

He eyed the only empty seat next to a brunette who looked oddly familiar. James swung his leg over the stool and dropped his books on the black counter top before throwing his best smile at the girl next to him; who knew, she might just be willing to do his work for the year. His grin quickly faded as the girl's deep brown eyes met his and seemed to sneer almost instantly.

"Find another seat," she said to him, barely containing her anger.

"I don't know if you've noticed D, but there aren't any other seats," he replied.

"Pay someone to switch with you or whatever, but find another seat," Bella growled at him. "And don't call me that." Her eyes were on fire as she stared intently back at him and it took all of her self control not to throttle him where he sat.

He eyed her up and down for a moment trying to figure out the best way to handle the situation before giving up and standing. He glanced around the room trying to figure out if there was someone else he could trade seats with as Mr. Banner took his place at the front of the room.

"Is there a problem Mr. Evans?" he addressed James, causing everyone in the class to turn and stare at him; everyone except for Isabella who was now looking decisively forward.

"Just looking for another seat, Sir," James replied, trying to be as polite as possible.

"Is there a problem with your current seat?" Mr. Banner asked, the skepticism in his voice prominent.

"Actually, Sir," Bella spoke up, "I'd really prefer to have a lab partner that pulls their own weight."

"I realize you're new here, Ms. Swan," Mr. Banner returned, "but do you really think it's fair to the rest of your classmates to ask them to work with someone you deem to not be able to pull their own weight?" Bella opened her mouth to respond but was quickly cut off by Banner speaking again. "Your worries are unfounded anyways, Ms. Swan," he continued on. "Mr. Evans maintains a four point oh GPA." Bella turned to James for confirmation and he at least had the decency to blush slightly as he nodded in confirmation.

"I assume that takes care of everything?" Mr. Banner raised an eyebrow at the two of them. Bella said nothing, but James didn't miss the angry sigh that escaped her as he retook his seat or the way her knuckles seemed to turn white as she gripped her pen. Mr. Banner nodded once to them before beginning his lesson of the day.

"Looks like we're stuck," James observed, feeling the need to say something.

"Looks like," Bella agreed, letting out a deep breath of air.

"It's only for a year, Duchess; we can manage it," James said.

Bella turned sharply towards him as he used her old nickname for the second time. "You do your work and I'll do mine, but don't for one minute think we'll be working on anything together," she said to him, her eyes blazing. "And I highly suggest you stop calling me that," she warned before turning her attention away from him.

_It's gonna be a long year_, he thought to himself.

* * *

Edward quickly got out of bed and slid into the first pair of jeans he could find. He wandered out onto the patio that connected to his room, lighting up a cigarette in the process. His gaze wandered over the trees surrounding his family's property and he blew out a breath of smoke as he reveled in the quiet.

"Edward," the whiny voice from his bed broke through the silence. He rolled his eyes before sticking his head back into the room making sure to hold the cigarette outside as far as possible. The last thing he needed was the help telling his mother that he'd been smoking in the house.

He eyed the blond still in his bed with a look of distaste as he waited for her to continue. "What're you doing out there?" Tanya threw her slightly mussed up mane over her shoulder in an effort to entice him back to bed, but all she got was an eye roll in response. Edward brought his hand in briefly, showing her the cigarette in his hand before turning his back and walking back out into the night. "Smoking is gross you know," Tanya hollered out to him.

_Yes, and the stuff you snort up your nose on a regular basis is so much more attractive,_ he resisted saying.

Tanya played with the edge of the comforter for a couple minutes while she waited for Edward to come back inside. She finally sighed in frustration when it became apparent that he wouldn't be back in anytime soon.

"I'm gonna take a shower," she yelled out to him as she extracted herself from the sheets. Edward's eyes snapped up and he quickly stubbed out the cigarette and headed back inside.

"Can't you do that when you get home?" he asked, leaning against the wall just inside the glass doors.

"You have an issue with me using the bathroom now?" Tanya raised an eyebrow at him incredulously. She was somewhat used to a hot and cold, post coital Edward, but this was a bit ridiculous.

"Yeah, I do," he confirmed. "I have to share it with someone else now and I really don't feel like explaining to Angela why you were in my shower."

"Who, Bella?" Tanya asked, remembering who was across the hall. "Don't worry about her, she won't say anything."

"All the same, I'd prefer not to chance it," he replied.

"Fine. Whatever. Just give me a ride home then and I guess I'll shower there," Tanya said as she began to search for her clothes.

"Can't you call Alice or someone to come get you?" he asked in a bored tone.

"No, I can't." She rolled her eyes at him as she slid her underwear up her legs. "You know, on second thought, I'll just go ask Bella for a ride home." Edward sighed in annoyance before throwing on a rumpled shirt and grabbing his keys.

"Hurry up," he growled at her. "I'll be waiting in the car." Tanya smiled sweetly in response as she slid into her jeans. Edward shut the door behind him only to stop dead in his tracks as Bella walked towards him.

"Fancy meeting you here," she quipped with a grin.

"I'm just heading out," he replied.

Bella glanced down at her watch and then back at him in confusion. "Where are you going?"

"Got a Gordita craving," he supplied.

"Grab me an Enchurito?" she requested.

"Sure thing." He nodded as she walked into her room. Edward let out a deep breath as her door shut. He ran a hand roughly through his messy hair, realizing that him not wanting Tanya in his shower had nothing to do with Angela finding out and everything to do with Bella catching Tanya in there. For some reason, he didn't want Bella knowing that he'd slept with Tanya.

* * *

"You're out late," Tanya's mother observed as her heels clicked across the foyer.

"Mom," Tanya said surprised. "I figured you'd have gone to bed." She fidgeted nervously, which was completely out of character for her.

"I had a phone conference with Alice's mother. She wanted to check in and make sure everything went well at camp and that the beginning of the year was going well." Margraux unclipped her hair and shook it out, running her fingers through her golden locks. "Where were you so late?" she asked as if the thought had just occurred to her.

"Kate wanted yogurt," she lied. "You know how those McAllister's are when they get a craving."

"Mmm," her mother nodded as she sat down on the settee. "That's interesting considering Irina and Kate stopped by earlier." She stopped, looking thoughtful for a moment and Tanya wondered if her mother was going to call her out on her lie. "She must've gotten the craving once they got home," she finished.

"Yeah," Tanya nodded as she moved towards the stairs. "I think I'm gonna head up."

"Tanya," her mother's voice carried up to her, effectively stopping her half way up the staircase. "Be careful with the Cullen men, they're not known for marrying the girl they fool around with." Tanya was instantly glad that she had mastered the art of concealment in her features at a young age.

"I'm not sure I understand what you mean," Tanya responded, taking a couple steps down to find her mother at the foot of the staircase.

"All the same," Margraux waived her hand as if to carry on. "I know firsthand how hard it can be to lose a Cullen. Don't get me wrong; socially, there are few names better than Hale, but Cullen is one of them and it can be quite the blow to one's ego to believe they will one day become one and then…Well, not."

Tanya and her mother had always had a closer relationship than most of the mothers and daughters in their circle, but never quite close enough to be discussing Tanya's sex life. A look of confusion swept over her features as she took the remaining steps down the stairs and rejoined her mother.

"What are you trying to tell me?"

"Carlisle and I spent quite a bit of time together when we were in school," she began, looking tired at the thought of the memory she was recalling. "Carlisle always said that he had no desire for a girlfriend, but I was the closest thing there was. I attended all the school dances with him and all the social functions. I think your grandmother had already had the invitations made up even. To me, it seemed no big deal to engage in other activities with him considering I knew I would become his fiancée after graduation." Margraux lost herself briefly in all those years ago. She could remember each and every dress she had danced with Carlisle in and still had them stored away in the attic.

"Carlisle was a year ahead of me in school, so he graduated and headed off to Yale in the fall. I was able to sneak off and visit him for the first month or so, but as my course load increased, I saw him less and less. We would see each other frequently over the winter holidays and all my nerves were calmed as everything had seemed so normal when he came home for Christmas. I was fully expecting a proposal in June and was utterly shocked when he came home for summer break with Esme, the five carat engagement ring already on her finger. I did my best to act as if it had meant nothing to me, but one night shortly before my own leaving for college, I broke down and asked him." She locked eyes with her daughter to ensure she was listening and Tanya's icy blue eyes stared back at her in confirmation. "He told me that men didn't marry the girl they fucked in high school and that I'd do well to think about that before I left for college."

Tanya instantly grew angry and hurt on her mother's behalf. She'd known Carlisle Cullen her entire life, and while he was never the kindest man, she'd never suspected him of such cruelty.

"Does Esme know?" she asked, unable to keep her curiosity at bay.

"Of course not!" Her mother looked shocked at the thought before calming down again. "It wasn't Esme's fault, she didn't know what had gone on and oddly enough, she's become one of my dearest friends. I just wanted to you to have all the information you might need," she finished. Without another word she ascended the stairs never glancing back at her daughter. Tanya briefly wondered if her mother was crying, but she knew better than to go to check on her. Margraux was a proud woman and no one would ever see her shed a tear, not even her own daughter.

* * *

Tanya wiggled the mouse to her computer and it instantly lit up with an instant message from Alice.

_danseur: you just getting in?_

_goldngyrl: yeah, late night…_

_danseur: how is dear Edward this evening?_

_goldngyrl: delicious as always._

Tanya's fingers hovered over the keys as she debated her next question.

_danseur: you're taking too long. What's up?_

_goldngyrl: do you think what I'm doing with him is wrong?_

_danseur: are you actually developing a conscience Tan? Since when do you care how this would affect Angela?_

_goldngyrl: Angela? Gawd no! My mom just said something tonight that got me thinking._

_danseur: do share_

_goldngyrl: she said that Cullen men don't…_

_danseur: marry the girl they fuck?_

_goldngyrl: not those words exactly, but yeah. How'd you know?_

_danseur: Rosalie's mom made a similar comment to her after she found out she slept with Alec. I believe her exact words were, "I sure hope you're not expecting to marry him, because Cullen men don't marry the girls they fuck."_

_goldngyrl: gotta love Lillian._

_danseur: well, look at it this way, you're not planning on marrying Edward, are you?_

_goldngyrl: of course not!_

_danseur: okay then, no worries! voir-vous demain, la fille!_

_danseur has logged off._

Tanya logged off of her messenger and closed down her computer. She hadn't planned on marrying Edward; well, not really anyways. The thought of walking into every major social event of the season on his arm was quite a pretty image though. She tossed her clothes on the floor and crawled into her enormous bed. She could still smell Edward on her skin and felt like a complete and utter idiot for reveling in that fact.


	5. Chapter 5

All recognizable characters are property of Stephanie Meyer and the author makes no financial gains from using them. I just like to make them spoiled little rich kids.

This story will bounce back and forth between the present time (senior year) and the summer before. Please do not hesitate to PM me with any questions you may have.

Big thanks to Kaila for betaing this for me.

Thank you to those of you who have added my story to your favorites or alerts, I really hope you enjoy it. My sincerest apologies in the delay of posting. I've had a lot going on personally lately and needed to focus on it. I hope to be back and in full swing now though. Check out the banner for this story made by the very talented MsRason: .

* * *

"Shit, I left my notebook in your car." Bella suddenly stopped right outside the academy doors.

"Don't say shit," Alice chastised with a scrunched nose.

Bella rolled her eyes in response. "I'm still waiting for that list of preapproved French curse words from you." Bella smiled innocently at Alice while Edward tried to stifle his grin.

"Here're the keys." He pulled them out of his pocket and tossed them to her; noticing that she caught them perfectly. "Make sure you lock it!" he hollered after her she waved her hand back at him, indicating she'd heard him.

She opened the car door and fished around for her notebook that had slid under the passenger side seat. Closing the door and pressing lock on the remote, she took off for the entrance doors again.

Just as she gripped the handle, someone gripped her wrist. Bella looked up, startled, into the slate gray eyes that she'd tried so hard to forget. She pulled her arm hard, but James refused to let go.

"We need to talk," he stated, simply.

"I have no desire to talk to you, or did you not get that message yesterday?" she asked, trying to pull her arm away again. "Let go!" she demanded when he made no attempt to remove his hand from her arm.

"If I let you go are you going to bolt away from me?"

"Probably," she confirmed.

"Then, no," he said, tugging a little so that they were practically chest to chest.

"Say whatever you need to say." Bella sighed in defeat, knowing he wasn't going to let go until he'd said whatever he needed to.

"Look." He sighed, looking utterly defeated. "I had no clue that you were going to end up here."

"Obviously." Bella rolled her eyes and James grimaced briefly as he tried to figure out what to say.

"Why are you hanging out with my friends?" he asked.

Bella raised one eyebrow at him in annoyance. "If you haven't noticed, they're my friends too."

"I've known them longer," he shot back.

"Oh, the kindergarten response," she replied before laughing. "An excellent defense. Plus, I think, if you asked them, they prefer me to you; especially Emmett."

James' eyes narrowed at the mention of his friend, instantly remembering his curiosity from the weight room. "If you wanna play monkey games with the gorilla, that's your business," he stated.

"And if it wasn't obvious why they preferred me before..." Bella trailed off.

James sighed before taking in a deep breath. "This isn't coming out right," he said, dropping her wrist finally and looking off in the distance.

"Oh, am I distracting you?" Bella asked with a sneer as she rubbed her wrist. James flinched at her words, just like she knew he would, but she was surprised at how much it had hurt her to say them.

"Can't we just," he paused, bringing his gaze back to her, "agree to disagree or something?"

Bella studied him for a moment before responding. "I suppose it would be easier on everyone if you and I could be civil to one another," she agreed.

James looked at her with a small bit of hope in his eyes. He was about to speak when J appeared next to them.

"Damn and I thought I was late," he said. He took in the strained expressions on their faces before backing up a couple paces. "I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

"No, we're done here I think," Bella said, eyeing James carefully. He gave her a small nod and she took it as a sign of their new agreement. "Walk me to class?" she asked, turning her full attention to J.

"Anything you want, Strawberry." J grinned widely at her before following her inside. James watched the two of them walk away unsure about whether he should be happy that they'd reached an understanding or furious that all of his friends seemed to be trying to get with the one girl he actually cared about. He'd never begrudged his buddies trying to get laid before, but Isabella was different and it was really starting to get to him.

* * *

_June 30th_

James woke up the next morning; his head feeling like it weighed a ton. He began coughing soon after and then felt the congestion in his sinuses.

_Great, third day at the beach and I get sick_, he thought. He dialed Isabella's cell lowering the volume on his phone as it rang through his head.

"Hello," she greeted her voice cheerful.

"Duchess," he replied through a cough.

"You okay?" she asked as he sniffled.

"Not feelin' so hot actually," he admitted. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to postpone taking you out on the boat til tomorrow."

"Are you sure you're all right?" she asked and he could hear the frown in her voice.

"Yeah, just a little rest and a little Xbox and I'll be as good as new," he assured her, coughing again. He hung up and dropped the phone onto his navy comforter.

As he was flipping through the channels a little while later, he heard a knock at his door. Frowning at the lack of entertainment on the TV, he clicked the power button and hollered, "Come in." Isabella peeked her head around the door glancing at him warily.

"You're not dying are you?" she asked with a smile.

"No." He laughed a congested laugh. "What're you doing here?" he asked, confused but happy to see her nonetheless.

She closed the door softly behind her and walked over to the bed sitting on the edge so as to not disturb him. She was wearing a pair of white cargo shorts that showed off her beginning tan nicely with a simple green t-shirt and her hair in a messy bun that girls sometimes wore. He smiled at the differences between this girl and the ones he usually hung out with. The others would probably be in itty bitty bikinis with short ass jean shorts on. Not that he had anything against itty bitty bikinis, at all, in fact, he was quite fond of them, but something about her relaxed look made him feel at ease.

"I figured, since you're probably sick because of me, that I'd bring you some soup," she said, looking down slightly.

He looked at her in confusion. "Why would I be sick because of you?"

"Because you gave me your sweatshirt last night and probably caught a cold because of it," she explained.

He smirked slightly and reached for her hand. "If this is all I get, it was worth it," he said and laughed before coughing again. "So, where's the soup?"

"Oh, I left it down stairs with Marcus," she informed him. "I didn't think you'd be hungry yet." They sat in silence for a minute, neither sure what to say. Bella glanced around the room taking everything in before spotting the Xbox remote on the nightstand. "What game were you going to play?" she asked, picking up the remote.

"I don't know, Madden or Major League probably," he said, shrugging.

"You up for some competition?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"From you?" he scoffed and then began coughing again.

"Unless you're not feeling up to it," she said with a guilty look.

"I'm game," he said, waving her off. "Would you mind asking Marcus to bring me up some orange juice before we start though?"

"I can go get it," she said, getting up. He smiled as he watched her leave the room; being taken care of could be kind of nice.

* * *

Two and a half hours later, James had lost two games of Major League and was in the process of losing a third.

"Catch that!" Bella challenged as her batter swung. James tossed the remote on the bed.

"Fuck it, I know when I've been beat." He laughed. "Brothers?" he asked as she got up to turn off the system, wondering how she'd kicked his ass.

"Cousins," she said, smiling. "We normally spend the summer in the mountains with my dad's brothers and they all have sons. Since the reception in the mountains sucks, they conned their mothers into letting them bring the gaming systems and that was practically all they did, so didn't leave me with many options."

James found himself smiling at this girl; she was casual, she called him on his bullshit and she could game. _What's not to like? _he thought, and she was cute as hell.

"You hungry?" she asked as he began to flip through channels. His stomach growled in response and he laughed lightly.

"Guess that answers your question," he said.

Marcus brought up soup for the both of them and they watched _The Count of Monte Cristo_ with their lunch. James felt at ease just lying there with Isabella and watching a movie. It was odd how comforting something so simple could be. Watching movies was something James normally did alone; chillin' in front of the TV wasn't something he did with his friends unless they were gaming, but even that had become less and less after they'd turned fifteen. Things were different with Isabella; he wasn't always trying to figure out what his next move should be or trying hard to impress her, but acting like he wasn't trying. His life could be so exhausting sometimes and it was nice to just be able to be when it came to Isabella. A mixture of the warm soup, the cold medicine, and the serene feeling he had when Isabella was around enabled him to fall into a deep sleep about half way through the movie.

* * *

James awoke sometime later and found himself searching for Isabella as soon as he opened his eyes. She was sitting in a large chair by the window with her feet dangling out of it. The afternoon sun illuminated her entire form making her look like an angel. He let out a contented sigh as she turned the page in her book and looked up.

He smiled when she caught his eye and whispered, "Duchess," into the air. Bella smiled and closed her book, setting it on the chair before making her was over to him.

"I hope you're not expecting me to start calling you 'Duke'," she said with a warm laugh. He continued to lay there and stare up at her as he lightly ran his fingers over her bare arm. "How are you feeling?" She ran her hand through his thick, soft hair. James groaned internally at the sensation of her hand in his hair and realized he was feeling much better.

"I can breathe now," he said with a smile and pulled her face to his giving her a small kiss.

"If you get me sick…" she warned as he pulled her to him again.

"Then we can do this all over again tomorrow," he said as she stretched out next to him.

He cuffed his hand behind her neck and began weaving his fingers into the loose hairs at the bottom of her head. Using his other arm, he pulled her on top of him, their forms pressed into each other as she trailed kissed down his jaw line. James tasted the skin just below her ears and continued his way down her neck as she tangled her hands into his hair. She let out a small moan as he nipped at her shoulder blade and he was glad for the comforter between them at the moment.

"As much as I'm enjoying all this," he said, kissing his way back up to her lips. "I figured I should let you know that my mother's probably down stairs with her card group." Bella pulled back immediately at his words looking like she'd already been caught. "Don't worry," he said, running his thumb along her jaw, "they don't know you're here. I just thought I should let you know before things went any farther."

Bella sat up quickly and righted her clothes that had become twisted. "I think this would be a good stopping point." She smiled at him guilty. "What do you feel like doing?" she asked, still sitting next to him with her knees bunched under her.

"I'd kind of like to get out of here for awhile," he admitted. Now that his head had cleared up and he could breathe again, his room was feeling extremely stale.

"You wanna take a walk along the beach?" she suggested.

"Yeah, that sounds good," he said, getting up. "I'm gonna take a quick shower first though."

* * *

_Present Day_

Kate was doing her best to ignore the insistent tapping on the bottom of her chair from Emmett's foot, but it was becoming the only thing that she could focus on. She tried to lose herself in looking over the shoes of her classmates.

_Knockoffs. Hand me downs. So last season. _She rolled her eyes, a self-satisfied smirk plastered across her face. She drew her attention to the board and began to copy down the extra credit problem Mr. Anderson posted daily. Just as she finished adding it to her notebook, the tapping caught her attention again.

"Do you mind?" she asked sharply as she turned to face him full on.

"Am I bothering you?" he asked, the look of innocence covering his features.

Kate had a hard time dealing with Emmett when she was in a good mood. The way nothing ever seemed to bother him and how he always was able to skate by in life annoyed her to no end. "Why are you even in this class anyways?" she asked, changing direction immediately. "Your math skills are horrid and you've already gotten into Duke, so it's not like you're looking to impress."

"I'm wanted here." He shrugged as if it were no big deal, his smile fully displaying the dimples that made most of the girls in school swoon.

"Trust me, you're not," Kate returned, throwing her hair over her shoulder and turning back towards the front of the room again.

"Sure I am." Emmett leaned forward so that he was close enough to whisper into Kate's ear. "Take a look around you honey; every chick in this classroom wants me here, except you."

Sure enough, as Kate lifted her head to take in the females surrounding them, every set of eyes that wasn't on the board, were focused dreamily on Emmett. Kate knew what the girls saw in him; he had muscles, an incredible smile, bright baby blues, and he'd been a football hero since he'd learned to catch the ball. Unlike the girls surrounding them though, these things did not impress Kate in the slightest.

_But they might impress someone else though,_ Kate thought, a wicked look taking over her features.

"Was there actually something you wanted, Em, or were you just trying to annoy the shit out of me?" she asked once she had regained her features.

"Actually, I was hoping to get some information on the new girl," he said, slightly surprised by the change in her demeanor.

"Bella?" Kate asked with a raised eyebrow, though she knew that was exactly who he was asking about.

"Yeah, any tips on her or are you guys all 'chicks before dicks' and shit already?" he asked, his pen drawing circles subconsciously all over his paper.

Kate thought a minute about how she wanted to play this. On the one hand, if she was too willing to help, Emmett might think she was setting him up. On the other though, if she was too hesitant to help him, he might give up and that wouldn't work for her at all. Emmett wasn't the brightest of creatures though, so she decided to help him out, but dial it down slightly.

"Why do you care?" she started, wanting to feel him out a bit before she got in any further.

"She's cute, looks like she could be fun. I mean, her response to Edward showing her underpants to the whole school was pretty classic." He chuckled lightly remembering not only Bella's reaction, but her retaliation as well.

"Well, Bella's not your normal type of girl," Kate began baiting him. "She's not going to fall for a set of muscles and some incredible dimples."

"They are pretty incredible, aren't they?" Emmett asked, smiling broadly and causing all the girls who had been watching him to let out a deep sigh. Kate rolled her eyes in response but said nothing. "So, what is she into then?"

"Classic things," Kate said vaguely, wondering how interested Emmett really was. If he was into Bella for just a piece of ass, then this wasn't worth her time, but if it was something more, as Kate expected Emmett might finally be interested in, then she would participate a little longer.

"Like classic cars and stuff?" Emmett asked raising an eyebrow, slightly confused.

"Um yeah, kind of," Kate replied, trying to hide her smirk. "More like classic movies and books."

"So I should take her to some old movie and give her a dusty book? I don't know if that's quite my style."

"Em, you're normal style is not going to work with Bella. You might just need to come up with something outside the box this time," she told him as Mr. Anderson entered the room.

"Outside the box, huh?" he whispered to her and she nodded in confirmation before turning back towards the front of the room, a satisfied smile on her face.

* * *

Bella and Kate made their way to one of the ball machines, passing several other girls in the process. The tennis courts were filled with girls in yellow, red, blue, and green. Kate eyed the girls around them as she motioned for Bella to go first. Kate stood slightly behind her and watched as she returned the first couple balls out of the machine.

"I talked to J in fourth," Kate informed her as if it was important news.

"And?" Bella asked, looking back at her with raised eyebrows.

"He said he was late this morning and ran into you and James." Bella said nothing in response, waiting to see where Kate was going with this. "He said you looked tense."

"Talking to James would make anyone tense," Bella muttered, returning another ball.

"I thought you didn't care about James anymore." Kate watched Bella carefully as she toyed with the top of her racket.

"I don't," she confirmed. "I just said that talking to him would make anyone tense."

"I don't think it made her tense." Kate nodded over to a girl in a red tank top, the same girl that James had left the cafeteria with on Monday. The next thing Kate knew, a tennis ball made a loud thwack sound as it bounced off the girl's butt. The girl turned quickly, glaring at whoever had just hit her as she rubbed her backside.

"Oops." Bella smiled patronizingly at the girl.

"You should probably go get some ice for that," Kate hollered to the girl. "Before the swelling makes it any larger than it already is." Bella chuckled quietly at the look on the girl's face before returning her focus to the ball machine. Kate returned her attention to Bella, eyeing her with speculation. "So, James makes anyone tense, huh?"

"What are you getting at?" Bella asked, giving Kate her full attention, tired of playing whatever game Kate was into at the moment. Even though she'd only known Kate since this summer, she knew that she never just said things without purpose.

"I'm just thinking maybe you should start focusing on someone else so you don't wander down the James path again," Kate suggested.

"I don't think I'm in danger of wandering down that path," she argued. "Plus, there aren't a whole lot of options around here if you haven't noticed."

"Oh, I've noticed. They're pretty, but not a whole lot going on upstairs."

"Yeah, but you've got Garrett," Bella said before turning back to the ball machine.

"Yes, I did luck out there." Kate smiled thinking of how great it had been to be on the same path as someone else. Garrett kept up with her like no one else ever could and he challenged her in ways she'd never expected anyone to. "What about Emmett?"

"Emmett?" Bella snorted the name trying to hold back a laugh. "Talk about a set of dimples with no further thought process happening."

"I don't know," Kate began, attempting to bait Bella just as she had Emmett earlier. "He can be pretty sweet when he wants to be." Bella stopped again and turned back towards Kate. "Really, when he's not being the typical jock, he can be really great."

"Emmett?" she asked again, mulling it over in her thoughts.

"Just think about it, that's all I'm saying," Kate said as she stepped up to switch places with Bella. "If nothing else, he could be a nice little distraction for awhile." Bella moved to the side of the court while she thought a little more about what Kate had said.

* * *

_June 30__th__ continued_

The air had begun to cool as the sun set and James took a deep breath letting the salty air fill his lungs. Isabella walked along beside him in comfortable silence watching the birds dip into the water every now and again. James smiled just watching her take everything in. In some ways it felt like he was doing things all over again, picking up on things he hadn't caught or experienced the first time. He laughed, watching a mom round up her two young sons who kept running into the ocean, trying to evade her. There was an older couple out on their deck and James marveled at the way the old man still seemed to look at his wife as if they were just starting to date.

_Maybe they are_, James thought absentmindedly. _Some elderly people do still decide to date once their spouse passes on._ James chose to believe that their love had simply transcended over the years_. Love? Why am I thinking about love?_ he thought confused. He wasn't a lover, he was a player, and he knew this. The girl standing next to him smiled at him with adoration in her brown eyes and he thought maybe she sees something different. _This isn't different, this is a distraction until the guys get here_, he scolded himself. He glanced over at Isabella again and somewhere a little voice inside him whispered, _Stop lying to yourself_.

"You feel like having some dinner?" he asked as they came back to his deck.

"Like with your family?' she asked uncertain.

"No, they'll be out I'm sure," he said, opening the door for her.

"Oh, okay then. What'd you have in mind?" she asked more upbeat.

"Marcus can make just about anything, what would you like?"

Bella pursed her lips and cocked her head to the side in thought as they walked through the huge living room. "This is going to sound really odd," she stated, leaning on the counter once they reached the kitchen, "but French toast sounds so good right now." James laughed loudly unable to contain himself as Marcus walked into the kitchen.

"This must be the lovely Swan girl," Marcus said with a nod causing Bella to blush fiercely.

"Bella," she said with a small smile, shaking his hand. "Why did you laugh at me?" She turned to James, anger present in her tone.

James looked at Marcus. "She wants to have French toast for dinner," he told him with a sly grin.

"Of course." Marcus laughed, shaking his head.

"What is so funny?" she asked, her hands on her hips, looking indignant.

"French toast is Master James' favorite meal when his parents are away," Marcus explained, still chuckling as he pulled things out of various cupboards. Bella smiled shyly at James looking embarrassed.

"Why do you only eat it when your parents are away?" she asked, sliding on to one of the stools along the counter.

"My mom doesn't approve of having breakfast food for dinner," he explained as he sat down next to her.

"How funny, my mom doesn't approve of having dinner foods for breakfast," she said with a chuckle.

"What kind of dinner food do you eat for breakfast?" he asked as he crossed his arms and leaned on the counter.

"Um pizza?" she asked in a 'duh' tone.

"Touché," he said with a nod of his head.

"So what do you normally do when you're here early and your friends aren't?" Bella asked, making small talk.

"Well this is a rare occasion," he admitted. "Normally we come out the same time as everyone else; we haven't been out this early since I was a kid."

"That's when the French toast started," Marcus said with a laugh.

"To be honest, I used to spend a lot of time right here," he said, remembering back.

"Used to drive me nuts," Marcus said.

"Tell me about young James," Bella requested, shooting James a sly smile.

"He was quite the talker," Marcus said as he began cooking. "He'd sit up there on the counter and just go on and on and on about the most trivial things."

"He ever tell you about the cloud stories?" Bella asked with a smirk. James bumped her lightly with his shoulder.

"We can't all be star gazers," he said, slightly annoyed. "Marcus actually taught me how to play poker."

"I've never really played," she replied, shrugging.

"We should play then," he told her as Marcus set their meals in front of them.

"Okay, so you want to get runs or sets basically," Bella said after James had explained some of the basic points of poker. "And it's better if they're suited."

"Yes." James began dealing out the cards. "You get five cards and you get to throw away once," he said, explaining.

James looked at his cards, three eights, a five and a two. He tossed the five and two and caught the fourth eight. He smirked to himself; he had always been good at cards and looked forward to the poker games at Emmett McCarty's house once school started back up. One of the only things he looked forward to during the school year. Emmett's parties were legendary and he normally took home quite a stash.

"So two fives would be bad right?" she asked, bringing him back to the present.

"Yeah, you want to have something better than that if you're going to bet," he said. They played a couple more hands and her cards seemed to get worse and worse.

"Maybe it's because we're not betting anything," she said after showing her hand of a pair of threes.

"You wanna bet?" he asked uncertainly.

"Well maybe that's why I'm not winning, I have nothing to lose," she said, somewhat frustrated.

"I don't want to take your money," he said honestly as he began to shuffle again.

"We don't have to play for money," she said, staring out the window as a cool breeze blew in.

"I know," he said, suddenly struck with an idea. "How about the loser has to kiss the winner, anywhere on their body they point out." He eyed her with a cocky grin as he awaited her response.

"I think that may just be your attempt to get me to make out with you," she said, smiling.

"You game or not?" he asked, challenging her.

"Game on," she said with a serious look.

James sighed to himself as he looked at his cards, he had a straight. _Like taking candy from a baby_, he thought as Isabella revealed her hand of two pairs. He started out easy on her and pointed to his cheek. As she leaned over to kiss it, he got a long view down her top. _Very nice_, he thought to himself as he began shuffling again.

Bella lost the next four hands and James had her kiss his other cheek, his nose, and each of his ears. Bella got a huge grin on her face as she picked up her cards.

"Straight!" she exclaimed, excitedly laying them down.

"You're getting better," he admitted before laying down his flush. "I still win though." He grinned smugly as he pointed to his neck. Bella leaned over placing her hands on either side of his legs and firmly pressed her lips to his neck sliding her tongue along his jugular gently. She smirked, leaning back and he adjusted the waist band of his shorts.

He had a hard time taking his eyes off her as he dealt the next hand. _Where shall I have her kiss next?_ he wondered as he viewed his hand containing another flush.

"You sure you want to keep betting?" he asked, revealing his hand causing Bella to frown.

"Crap, all I've got are two pair again," she said, setting her hand down. James looked perplexed for a moment at her hand before looking up at her. "Two pairs of sevens!" She watched him with a smug expression as he studied her cards. "Right here." She tapped her finger against her jaw line once he'd looked up. James quickly complied.

_She'll win one_, he admitted to himself.

After eight straight losses later, James couldn't keep his hands and lips off her.

He gripped her hips manically as his lips rushed to taste all the skin that was available to him. The rug was agitating his knees, so he pulled Isabella to his chest and rolled onto his back, placing her on top of him. He hungrily pulled her face to his again, attacking her lips. Their tongues fought against each other, both trying to claim dominance. He began running his fingers over the smooth skin of her back and she sat up straddling him as she tried to gain her balance. James let out a low growl as she made contact with him. She eyed him seductively as she gripped the bottom of her t-shirt, pulling it over her head.

James thought he was going to pass out as he took in her revealed chest. She had on a hunter green lace bra and the curves of her breasts protruded delicately over the lace. He ran his hand slowly over the exposed skin and she shuddered in anticipation. He leaned forward as much as he could and pulled his shirt over his head as well wanting to feel her skin on his. He pulled her to him once again, covering her neck with his mouth. She wound her hands into his hair and he groaned at the feeling of having her pressed against him.

She pulled back a little, breathing heavily and he attacked her stomach with kisses, his hands trailing along her sides and coming to a rest at the top of her shorts. He looked up at her briefly, gauging her mood and she coaxed him with her eyes. He kissed her a couple more times as he slowly undid the button on her shorts. He slid his fingers along the inside of them as Marcus' voice came over the intercom.

"Master James," he said, waiting for a response. James looked at Isabella apologetically as they fought to catch their breath. Bella stood allowing James to go over to the intercom.

"Yes," he said as calmly as he could manage.

"Your parents just pulled in," he informed him.

"Thank you, Marcus." He turned back to Bella who had already rebuttoned her shorts and was sliding on her t-shirt after hearing the announcement. "Sorry about that," he said as she handed him his shirt from the floor.

She smiled at him, pressing her hand against his chest. "I have to say that's the most interesting poker game I've ever played," she said, raising her eyebrows.

"You hustled me," he accused.

"No, I just started getting the hands," she said honestly.

"I call for a rematch tomorrow," he said as they walked down the stairs.

"On the cards or something else?" she asked cockily.

"Whichever," he said smiling as if it made no difference.

* * *

After dropping Isabella off, he walked back home and took a quick cold shower before heading down stairs.

"Thanks for the warning," James told Marcus as he pulled some ice cream out of the freezer.

Marcus nodded and looked up before he headed out. "Your parents will be gone tomorrow until late Saturday," he informed James with an interested look.

"I didn't even know they were leaving," James admitted through a mouthful of ice cream.

"Just a little bit of information I thought you might find useful," he said, leaving the room.

_That takes care of my parents_, _but what about hers?_ _I wonder if I could convince her mother into letting her stay. We will be out on the boat all day tomorrow; she may be too exhausted to come home. I bet her mom would buy it. Just turn on a bit of the Evans charm and I'm sure her mom would eat it up_, he thought smugly to himself. He licked his lips thinking of Isabella on top of him pulling off her shirt again.

"Duchess, you don't know what you do to me," he said out loud.


	6. Chapter 6

All recognizable characters are property of Stephanie Meyer and the author makes no financial gains from using them. I just like to make them spoiled little rich kids.

This story will bounce back and forth between the present time (senior year) and the summer before. Please do not hesitate to PM me with any questions you may have.

Big thanks to Kaila for betaing this for me.

Thank you to those of you who have added my story to your favorites or alerts, I really hope you enjoy it. Check out the banner for this story made by the very talented MsRason (link can be found on my profile).

* * *

Alice danced down the hall twirling and leaping as she went. Bella smiled and shook her head as she walked along side her. How Alice still had so much energy after the three hour workout she'd just put the whole team through was beyond her.

"Do you have back up batteries or something?" Bella asked, adjusting the large duffle on her shoulder.

"Years of practice have resulted in incredible stamina," she bragged with grin.

"I bet that comes in handy." Bella smirked at Alice.

"Your leaps were looking a little sloppy today," Alice noted before doing one herself.

"I know," Bella replied, sighing. "I was just beat by the end of practice."

"The Cullens have an amazing dance studio. I recommend you take advantage of it when you get back," Alice said.

"Recommend?" Bella asked, raising an eyebrow at her friend's choice of words.

"That's my nice way of telling you to do it." She laughed lightly and Bella rolled her eyes good-naturedly. "Stretch out extremely well with the bar and then do twenty leaps across the floor making sure to pay attention to your form in the mirrors."

"It's a good thing I like you," Bella replied. "Otherwise, I'd probably have to kick your ass for ordering me around."

"That's why I'm so lovable!" Alice smiled widely at her. "People just want to please me."

"I have so much to learn from you, Master Yoda."

"Did you just compare me to a short little green guy?" Alice asked, crinkling her nose at the thought.

"Would you have preferred Obi Wan?"

"Ewan McGregor is hot," Alice replied, licking her lips at the thought.

They reached the end of the hall and exited out the large double doors and into the parking lot. Alice glanced around looking for J or Emmett and spotted J several feet away locking lips with some nameless sophomore. Oh, how she loved watching the looks on those girls' faces when she took the boys away.

"You gonna ride with Emmett?" Alice asked, turning back to Bella briefly.

"Yeah, I don't really feel like interrupting J." Bella had a slight look of disgust on her face. All she could think of when she saw J kissing the girl in the red skirt was James leaving the cafeteria on Monday and what probably ensued. Although, hitting her with the tennis ball this afternoon had been entertaining.

"Can't say I blame ya." Alice scrunched her face again as she looked over at J and the blond. "Really, work on those leaps though, the practice will help," Alice said, turning back to Bella again. "Jusqu'à demain." Alice placed a kiss on each of Bella's cheeks and walked away.

An evil smile spread over Alice's lips as she approached J. He released the girl's mouth with a loud pop, but took no notice of Alice's approach. The girl looked dazed for a moment before attempting to pull J back to her. As she reached for the collar of his shirt, a small hand snaked its way onto J's chest.

Alice slid her hand over the buttons on J's shirt before resting her hand on the top of his jeans. She peeked her head around the side of his arm and he immediately released the girl he'd been kissing. J looked down at the small girl who had now wrapped herself around him and smirked wondering what she was up to.

"You're done here," Alice told the girl as J wrapped his arm around her tiny shoulders. The girl glanced quickly at J, expecting some sort of response, but received nothing more than a shrug. Alice tilted her head slightly to the side and the girl quickly hopped off the fence she'd been sitting on and took off across the parking lot.

"You don't have to be so harsh to them," J said, turning the both of them and heading to his Dodge Viper.

"Oh please!" Alice scoffed, folding her arms over her chest. "If you weren't looking for me to say something rude to her, then you wouldn't have been making out with her knowing that I'd be coming out any minute expecting a ride home."

"You could always drive yourself," he noted. "I think your Porsche feels neglected."

"If I drove myself we wouldn't be able to have our daily chats," she returned.

J said nothing but smiled anyways. He popped his trunk open as they approached the car and tossed his bag in before grabbing for Alice's. Alice pranced over to the passenger side before opening the door and lithely dropping inside. She was digging through her bag as J settled himself in the driver's seat and propped her now bare feet onto the dashboard with a satisfied smile on her face. J watched her with interest as he backed out of the parking space and drove through the gates of the Academy.

"You will have my car detailed if you get any of that crap on it," J warned as Alice began to polish her toes.

She threw him an annoyed look before rolling her eyes and continuing on. "I have been painting my toes in your car for the last two years and have never spilled a drop. I resent that comment," she finally said, switching feet.

After all ten toes had a nice shimmering pink gloss to them; she capped the bottle and dropped it back into her bag. She leaned forward and began blowing on her toes in an effort to get them to dry faster.

"Tell me something," Alice requested, not looking up from her petite feet.

"Something," J stated.

Alice shook her head but continued on. "Since we both know how much you hate having me send your little playthings away, why don't you tell me the real reason you were kissing that girl," Alice requested.

"She was cute, it was something to do." Alice nodded once and J knew that she hadn't believed him at all.

"It wasn't to make someone jealous?" she asked.

"If I'd thought making you jealous would get me anywhere with you, I would have tried that years ago." He tossed a smile at her for good measure. Alice rolled her eyes and pursed her lips in response.

"I was thinking more along the lines of a leggy brunette." J shrugged but said nothing. Alice watched his features carefully looking for any change but found none. She pursed her lips in thought before speaking again. "She won't sleep with you."

J burst out laughing at this statement. "Is she breathing?" he asked, rhetorically.

"Contrary to your beliefs, not every girl you meet will sleep with you."

"You did."

"A mistake I haven't repeated," she said as she toyed with the ends of her hair. J let out a deep breath, his lips settling into a grim line. If there was one sexual experience he'd like to repeat, that was it.

"Well, maybe I'm interested in more than just sleeping with her." Alice snorted indignantly. J's mouth dropped open in shock. "What, I can't be interested in a girl for more than sex?"

"The only girls you have ever associated with that you weren't sleeping with, was us." J said nothing as he watched Alice, waiting for her to put two and two together. "She is one of us," Alice stated, finally glancing at him. J nodded and smiled as realization dawned on her. "If you're just after her to befriend her, then what's with all the trying to get into her pants?"

"Come on!" J laughed, knowing he was going to have to spell everything out to her. "Don't you think it's just slightly amusing to watch James try to pretend he doesn't give a shit about her when the rest of us hit on her?"

"It was fun to watch him throw a fit and stomp out of the cafeteria the other day." She nodded in agreement.

"Just let me play. Okay, Mary Alice?"

"Don't call me that, Jasper," she stated, giving him a playful shove. J smiled widely, pulling her to his side and ruffling her hair.

* * *

Bella watched Alice traipse off towards J and she had to laugh as she watched their exchange take place. Something off in the distance caught her eye and she looked across the parking lot to see Emmett leaning against his shiny black Porsche Cayenne Turbo. He had on a snug fitting pair of jeans with a light blue button down shirt that was blowing slightly in the breeze. He had one leg propped against the tire and a genuine smile appeared on his face as their eyes met. Bella tucked a hair behind her ear and adjusted her bag before making her way towards him.

"Hey," she greeted him softly.

"Hey yourself." He grinned wider.

"Any chance I can get a ride home?" Bella asked, peeking up at him coyly.

"I think that could be arranged." Emmett nodded, reaching for the bag that was hanging off her arm.

Bella handed him the bag and watched him as he opened up the back and tossed her bag in with his. Perhaps Kate was right; maybe what she needed to deal with this whole James situation was something to distract her. Emmett seemed like an okay guy. He had a great body from what she'd seen, a great sense of humor, and he appeared to be extremely easy going.

"See something you like?" he asked, turning back to her and catching her watching him.

"It's possible." Bella shrugged before turning away and walking the couple steps to the passenger side door. Before she could reach for the latch though, Emmett's large hand was on the door opening it for her. She gave him a questioning look, but he offered her his hand instead, helping her up and into the vehicle. He grinned once more at her before making sure she was all the way inside and shutting the door.

Bella watched as he made his way around the car, wondering where this gentlemanly side had come from. Emmett opened his own door and hoisted himself inside as Bella continued to gaze at him.

"What?" he finally asked as he stuck the key into the ignition.

"Nothing; you just surprise me is all," Bella replied.

"You like surprises?" he asked, turning his big baby blues on her.

"Depends on the surprise."

"I have a question for you." He paused, leaning back and buckling in his safety belt. "Are you an adventurous type of girl or a 'don't put me in any situation I could break a nail' type of girl?" he asked, making his voice high on the last part.

Bella had to laugh at his wording. "What kind of girl do you think I am?"

"I hope you're the adventurous type."

"Why's that?" she asked as he put the car in drive.

"Because if you're not, you're gonna hate my surprise." Emmett grinned at her as he pulled out of the front gates onto the road.

* * *

Bella stumbled for what felt like the tenth time since she and Emmett had started their trek through the woods. She had asked him three times where he was taking her, but he refused to give her even the smallest of hints.

"I'm glad we're doing this after dance practice and not after school, there's no way I could've done this in the shoes Alice bought for me," she stated as she attempted once again to get her footing.

"True, but those heels sure make your ass look good," Emmett returned, looking back at her and smiling. Bella rolled her eyes at him, but returned his smile all the same. "We're almost there anyways, so you can stop worrying."

Sure enough, less than five minutes later, Emmett came to a stop in front of a small lake. The water was almost completely surrounded by trees, but allowed some light from the afternoon setting sun to filter in. There was a calmness here that Bella hadn't found anywhere in quite some time and she basked in the quiet that surrounded her.

"What do you think, was it worth it?" Emmett asked, taking in the serene look that had taken over her face.

"I love it. It's so peaceful," she stated as she closed her eyes and took in a large breath of air. When she opened her eyes again, she saw Emmett unbuttoning his shirt and preparing to take it off. "What are you doing?"

"Going for a swim. Care to join me?" he asked, pulling his shirt off and hanging on a nearby bush.

"I am not getting naked with you," she responded indignantly to which Emmett rolled his eyes.

"I assume that you have underwear on, which cover up the same as a swimsuit," he began as he unbuckled his belt. "However, if you were going commando, I wouldn't mind that either."

He turned to throw her a smirk but was met with her tank top thrown into his face. His boisterous laugh filled the air around them. Emmett quickly pulled his pants off the rest of the way and after stepping out of his shoes and socks, dove into the calm water.

"Coming?" he asked Bella after he came back above the water. Bella eyed him for a moment. "Don't tell me I was wrong about you." These seemed to be the magical words as she pulled off her shoes and socks before sliding her pants down her legs and diving into the water.

"Where are we?" Bella asked a little while later.

"You know the trees you can see from the balcony in your room?"

"How do you know what the view from my room looks like?" she asked, quirking an eyebrow at him.

Emmett rolled his eyes at her before answering. "I know the Cullens' property and by process of elimination, I know which room is yours. Don't worry; I haven't been spying on you." Bella laughed at the thought and Emmett grinned back at her. "Anyways, their property goes back quite a ways and one summer when we were kids, we decided to be explorers and we found this place."

"Who's we?" Bella asked.

"Cullen, J, Evans, and myself. Almost every summer we'd hang out here. Once we were old enough, we'd bring sleeping bags and marshmallows and shit and then when Demetri and Garrett moved here, we brought them along too," he informed her.

"I'm not intruding on sacred ground, am I?" she teased.

"I won't tell if you won't tell." He winked at her. "My favorite thing about this place is that you can see all the stars as they start to appear." With that, he brought his feet to the surface of the water and began floating on his back. Bella watched him for a moment before he tugged on her wrist indicating she should join him.

It took a minute for Bella to get situated, but once she did, her gaze landed on the great expanse of stars above her and another memory of star gazing immediately over powered her. Her breath caught in her throat as her body dipped under the water. She felt a strong set of hands pulling her back above the surface and she started coughing and sputtering as she tried to take in air.

"You okay there?" Emmett asked, his eyes wide with concern. He ran his hand soothingly over the back of her head as he watched her carefully.

"Um, yeah." Bella coughed a couple more times. "I just, uh, swallowed some water."

"Perhaps I should have started with floating lessons," Emmett attempted to joke. Bella rewarded him with a small smile. "You see, the trick is to keep all your weight held in your stomach." Emmett slipped his arm around Bella's middle, pulling her towards him in the process.

"I'll remember that in the future," she replied. Bella's brown eyes locked onto Emmett's blue ones and she found it impossible to look away.

"Please do." Emmett smiled before tipping her chin and meeting her lips with his.

* * *

Bella shut the door to the Cullens' home softly behind her before leaning back against it and biting her lip. She smiled to herself as she relived her kiss with Emmett through her memory. He had softly touched his lips to hers, trailing his fingers along her spine. Even in the water, it had given her chills and she had pushed herself more against him. One hand snaked its way into his hair while the other ran over his muscular shoulder. His lips were insistent, but his tongue was gentle, mingling softly with hers.

"You certainly look like you had a good evening." Mrs. Cullen's voice broke into Bella's thoughts bringing her back to reality. "Which one was it?" Mrs. Cullen asked with a knowing smile. While Esme played her part of a lady of leisure to a T, she still enjoyed interacting with her children and their friends. Alice and Rosalie had confided in her about many things and she was glad that she was still able to provide perspective to the younger generation.

Bella studied the older woman for a moment. She had only had a handful of interactions with her since her mother had informed her that she would be staying with the Cullens and they had all seemed overtly formal. Esme Cullen had long auburn hair that hung around her in perfectly calculated waves and her make-up looked like it had been applied by an artist. She was dressed in her standard knee length skirt, silk blouse and matching jacket, but the pointedly reserved look that Bella had come to expect was gone and replaced with a slightly mischievous crooked smile. Bella instantly realized where Edward had gotten his smile from and couldn't help but smile in return.

"I just had a good day is all," Bella replied, not wanting to shun Mrs. Cullen but also not wanting to sit and chat with her about her evening with Emmett.

"I can see that," Esme returned, a smirk playing on her lips.

"Is it alright if I use the dance studio?" Bella asked, wanting to deter the conversation from its current path.

"Of course," Esme replied. It saddened her a bit that Bella didn't want to talk to her, but then again, she barely knew the girl and had only been living in her home for a couple days. "It's just past the music room." Esme pointed down a hallway that Bella had only been down once, when she was given the grand tour of the Cullen home. Bella smiled and nodded once in thanks before heading to her room to change.

* * *

The lights from James' Lotus shone brightly against the Cullens' garage before he killed the engine and opened his door. He stepped out onto the cobblestone drive and looked at the house. He still wasn't quite sure what he was doing here, but when he'd gotten in his car an hour ago to go for a drive and clear his head, it had inevitably driven him here. He couldn't get over the disgust he'd seen in Isabella's eyes over the last few days, not that he'd deserved anything less, but it was still bothering him. He wondered if she'd known when they met this summer that they would be going to school together and she'd just never said anything, or if seeing him the first day had been just as big of surprise as it had been to him.

_No,_ he thought remembering back. The look on her face had told him that she had known exactly what to expect. _But why not say anything?_ He wondered as he walked up the front steps. He knocked on the door and was immediately let inside by Aro, the Cullens' butler.

"Young Master Cullen is in the music room," Aro informed James, shutting the door behind him.

James listened for a moment and could barely make out the random notes being played on the piano. He nodded once to Aro before heading down the hallway he knew led to the music room. He had hoped that Edward would be in his room, that way he'd have an excuse to go by Isabella's, but it appeared he was out of luck.

James rapped his knuckles against the slightly open door before walking in. Edward looked up, surprised to see James.

"What's up?" he greeted him, trying to figure out why James was here. He had a pretty good idea as to why and it was probably the same reason he was in the music room, playing solitary notes on the piano instead of parked somewhere with Tanya's head buried in his lap.

"Not much. I was just driving around and thought I'd stop by," James answered nonchalantly. Edward smirked at his friend's lie but said nothing in return.

They chatted idly for a couple minutes about nothing in particular before loud rock music caught their attention.

"Is someone listening to music?" James asked, looking out the door trying to figure out where the music was coming from. Edward looked up as well, wondering who would be listening to rock music. "Is that Papa Roach?"

Edward got up from the piano bench and wandered out into the hall with James following shortly behind him. They followed the sound of the music to the dance room and peeked their heads inside to find Bella practicing her leaps across the floor.

Edward chuckled to himself softly. _Trust this girl to practice ballet dance moves to this kind of music, _he thought.

Once James caught sight of Isabella, the music disappeared from the world. All he could focus on was the determination on her face as she moved across the room and the way her body glided through the air when she leapt. Her hair was pulled into a messy bun and she wore a simple racer back tank top and dance pants; an outfit he had grown quite fond of this summer.

Both boys were quickly pulled from their thoughts as Bella realized they were there. She smirked at her reflection in the mirror before grabbing the remote for the stereo and lowering the volume of the music.

"Can I help you?" she asked, eyeing them both. She tried to not focus on James, but her eyes kept wandering back to him. He was dressed in a pair of fitted jeans and a white polo shirt, but the look on his face was what held her attention. It was a look she hadn't seen since this summer and it brought her back to that time. He looked calm and comforted at the moment and she realized how much she'd missed that look.

"Papa Roach?" James asked, quirking an eyebrow at her, a small smile playing on his lips. "An interesting choice for dancing."

"Well, it's no Linkin Park," she returned his small smile with one of her own, "but it works."

Edward watched the two of them interacting and instantly wondered if this was what they had been like this summer; soft looks, slightly teasing comments and eyes that couldn't leave each other. He suddenly felt like he was intruding and moved to leave them alone.

Edward's movement caught Bella's eye and reminded her that it wasn't three months ago and this wasn't the James she had cherished. She internally chastised herself for letting her old feelings get the better of her and turned on her 'ice queen' persona as Kate had told her to do when she felt herself getting pulled back in by James' presence.

"I bet you play Linkin Park for all the girls though, I'm sure it's nothing special."

James was taken aback at the sudden change in her demeanor and even Edward did a double take, stopping in his attempt to leave the room. James' face darkened slightly, the arrogant look Bella had come to expect over the last couple days returning full force.

"Just another thing in my bag of tricks." He eyed her with disdain.

"Tricks are for kids," she returned before turning her back to him and turning the stereo back up.

Edward did his best to suppress the laughter that was threatening to burst out of him as he nodded to James for them to leave. James took one more look at Isabella before following Edward out of the room. If she'd have glanced up and met his reflection in the mirror, she would have seen the hurt in his eyes, but she made herself focus on the leaps she was doing and missed it.


	7. Chapter 7

**All recognizable characters are property of Stephanie Meyer and the author makes no financial gains from using them. I just like to make them spoiled little rich kids.**

**This story will bounce back and forth between the present time (senior year) and the summer before. Please do not hesitate to PM me with any questions you may have.**

**Big thanks to Shepeppy for betaing this for me.**

** Check out the banner for this story made by the very talented MsRason (link can be found on my profile).**

* * *

Physics dragged by on Thursday, the empty seat next to him claiming all of James' attention. He knew she was at school that day, he'd just seen her at lunch. How fun that had been to watch as J and Emmett sandwiched her between the two of them, constantly touching her and trying to make her laugh. Even Demetri had been completely focused on her, leaning halfway into Rosalie's lap as he tried to talk to Isabella. It hadn't escaped his attention that Emmett had been missing from weight training the period before as well.

James tried to tell himself that it was just a coincidence and that Emmett was probably under the bleachers with some sophomore, but he knew it wasn't true. Isabella's words from the day before echoed back to him full force.

"I think, if you asked them, they prefer me to you; especially Emmett," she'd said with a wicked gleam in her eye. He'd implied that he couldn't care less what she did with Emmett, but the truth of it was that he really didn't want her with any of them, Emmett included. He knew he was being a hypocrite, but he couldn't find it in himself to care.

Last night had been particularly difficult. He knew that Edward had seen right through him when he'd shown up, but that hadn't been what bothered him. When he'd seen Isabella, it put him in a completely different frame of mind. For just those few minutes as they'd traded flirtatious quips about music, everything was back to how it had been before he'd screwed it all up. She'd looked at him with that soft expression that only she had and her teasing voice made him smile in spite of himself. Then, like a switch had been flipped, it was gone. Ice took over her features as she implied that their first time had meant nothing and he'd basically agreed.

It was with an amused expression that James watched Emmett drop out of his Turbo alone on Friday morning, but he became extremely irritated when J opened up the passenger side door of the Viper and Isabella stepped out. Emmett watched J with obvious disdain as he made no attempt to leave Bella's side.

"There's our missing girl!" Alice squeaked as she bounced to Bella's side.

"I'm not missing, I'm right here," she said, smiling brightly.

"Well, inquiring minds want to know where you were yesterday," Alice replied.

"I was around," Bella said, but James didn't miss the sideways glance she shot at Emmett.

"You have to tell me!" Alice demanded.

"I think I'd rather not, thanks." James could tell by the look on Isabella's face that she knew exactly what she was doing to Alice. Everyone knew the girl couldn't stand to not be in the know about everything.

"You don't have to give her any details, but you do have to tell us the next time you'll be missing from gym," Tanya spoke up in an authoritative voice. "For Christ's sake, that frizzy Jenny girl wouldn't leave us alone since there were only three of us."

"I'm pretty sure I don't _have _to do anything," Bella responded as she moved to stand between Rosalie and Angela. Bella wasn't sure whether she'd had enough of Tanya's superior attitude, or if she was just finally comfortable enough with the whole group, but the tone in her voice was challenging and everyone had taken notice.

Angela slid her bookmark into place and shut the book she had been reading. She had been sitting cross legged on the hood of Edward's car when everyone arrived and had lost herself completely in the words on the pages and the feel of Edward's hand in her hair. It wasn't until she'd heard Tanya's commanding tone that she'd even taken notice of the others, and even then she had written it off as something of no importance. When she'd heard Bella's responding tone though, she knew this was something she should pay attention to.

"I think she was just saying that it would have been nice to have a little heads up," Kate spoke up before Tanya could respond. She'd quickly taken a look at the several shades of red Tanya's face was turning and decided to intervene before anything really got started.

"Oh, I told Rosalie," Bella informed her, throwing a sly glance at Rosalie.

"It must've slipped my mind." Rosalie shrugged as Tanya and Kate glared at her, neither catching the small smile shared between her and Bella. "It really was quite fun to watch Tanya try and ignore Jamie," she whispered to Bella.

"All the same," Tanya began, calling the attention back to her, "I really don't think it should be repeated."

A small smile played on the corners of Bella's lips and James wondered what she would say next. He knew Isabella well enough to know that she was never going to end up pinned under Tanya's thumb. He silently wished they were on better terms so that he could take more pleasure in this, but for now he'd settle for silent pride.

"If I need to miss class for something I feel like doing, I will." Bella's eyes burned a deep chocolate as she stared down Tanya, a look on her face daring to be challenged. "I'm sure there have been times when you've needed to skip out on class, right?" she asked in a completely patronizing tone. She didn't need to glance over at Edward so that Tanya would know what she meant; the message was clear enough.

It was Tanya's eyes, however, that did momentarily land on Edward. She knew exactly what Bella was getting at, and as she watched his long fingers wrap themselves around Angela's boring brown locks, she instantly wished it was her own golden ones instead. She hated that they only saw each other behind closed doors and that occasionally it was the janitor's door they were behind.

"Just let me know next time then?" Tanya spoke it as more of a question, her tone vastly less superior. Bella nodded once to her as Kate wound her arm through Tanya's and headed for the school.

Angela hadn't missed the way Tanya's eyes ran over Edward and while most would have expected her to get slightly jealous, if not extremely pissed, she couldn't help but feel smug. Yes, Tanya was doing things with Edward, a fact of which Angela had never been naive to. In part it bothered her that it was Tanya that Edward did these things with and not some nameless freshman or sophomore like the rest of the guys, but she would be damned if she was ever going to be the girl on her knees in the janitor's closet. Therefore, she put up with it as long as it suited her and currently it did. Because while Tanya may have been in Edward's bed, it was she who would be on his arm at the Hale Ball next Saturday and not Tanya.

"You ready to go to class?" Edward asked in a soft voice, his fingers trailing lightly over her cheek. She nodded once and smiled softly at him before allowing him to take her hand and lead her into school.

* * *

"I seriously thought her head was going to explode!" Angela heard Rosalie saying to Demetri as she took her seat behind her in first period. Edward slid into his seat behind Demetri before turning his body towards Angela once again. A small smile appeared on her lips every time he did this. It wasn't something big, but to her it was important. She was very into body language and the fact that Edward always angled himself towards her told her that she was his focus. She also found it quite amusing that even if he was talking to her, his body was never angled towards Tanya.

"I mean did you see how red her face was?" Rosalie's voice broke into Angela's head once again and she turned slightly towards her to listen to the conversation she was having with Demetri. Angela wasn't overtly fond of the girls that Edward hung out with, but Rosalie bothered her the least. She was always friendly and tried to include Angela, whereas Tanya and Kate preferred to ignore her if they could.

"I have to say that I was certainly surprised to see the new girl respond to her like that," Demetri replied with an amused look. "It's a rarity to see anyone other than you, Kate or Alice stand up to her." Angela had to agree; very few people stood up to Tanya Hale and it was always interesting to watch.

"Bella can hold her own," Rosalie replied with a proud smile. "I think she's going to fit in just fine around here."

"Did you really not tell Tanya that Bella would be gone yesterday?" Demetri asked, obviously surprised.

"I did," Rosalie confirmed. "It's always amusing to watch Tanya have to deal with someone she doesn't like when she isn't prepared for it."

"You know, part of me wishes that Kate hadn't spoke up when she did," Demetri said, looking off into space and rubbing his chin.

"Why?" Rosalie asked.

"It could've been incredibly hot to watch Tanya and Bella go at it." Demetri laughed as Rosalie smacked his chest. "I think the new girl's pretty tough. I'd take a note on her. What about you Cullen, you take that bet?" Demetri asked turning and facing Edward.

"You trying to make bets on things that'll never happen?" Edward asked, quirking an eyebrow at his friend. "You must be pretty desperate for Emmett's tonight."

"I have been looking forward to Emmett's for the last month," Demetri replied. "New girl will be there, right?" Demetri turned his attention back to Rosalie waiting for an answer.

"As far as I know," Rosalie replied. "We filled her in on everything over the summer."

"You're coming tonight, right?" Edward asked, turning his attention back to Angela.

Angela hesitated for a moment. The idea of going to Emmett's Friday night poker party slash, let's tell each other how beautiful and awesome we are, did not appeal to her in the slightest. In truth, there was a lecture being given at the local college tonight that she would prefer to attend, but she knew there was no way Edward would give up the traditional Friday night. Being coupled with Edward meant attending the same functions he did, it was expected that he would be there tonight and therefore, she was expected as well. She took a deep breath and reminded herself of all the people she would be introduced to next weekend at the Hale Ball. All of Mr. Cullen's friends and colleagues who had ties to all the important universities and all the important people. Angela's future was about the right connections and the perfect person to help her make those connections was Carlisle Cullen's youngest son.

"Where else would I be?" she finally responded to Edward with a small smile. He grinned back at her before turning his attention to the front of the room. Angela sighed internally before focusing her attention there as well.

* * *

Emmett stared at the board in front of him full of Italian words unable to take them in. He couldn't get Bella out of his head. He kept seeing the door of J's Viper opening and her stepping out.

_Why did she show up with him this morning when she usually rode with Kate or Edward? Was there something going on between the two of them?_

He'd noticed that J seemed somewhat interested in her, but he hadn't shown much more interest than he would any other pretty new face. Yeah, there was a bit more because she wasn't just some random girl, she was one of them, but still, J didn't seem to be overtly interested in her.

_Maybe she was interested in him?_

No, that didn't seem right. Bella normally gave J a bit of the cold shoulder and never sought out his attention.

_Maybe she's just playing hard to get with him. Or maybe she's playing hard to get with me._

This thought agitated him more than the other. Emmett was quite used to girls falling into his lap. When it came to the vast majority of the girls in the school, all he had to do was flash them his perfectly dimpled smile and they'd follow him a round for a week at a minimum. Granted, some of the upper class girls didn't seek out his attention as much as the underclassmen, but any of them he'd wanted, he'd already had.

The girls in his circle were different though and he knew that going into perusing Bella. Kate had warned him that his usual means of getting what he wanted wouldn't work with Bella and that's why he'd taken her where he had yesterday. Emmett was so lost in his own thoughts, he didn't notice when Demetri entered the classroom and took his seat next to him.

"Some craziness this morning, eh?" Demetri said.

"Yeah, it still doesn't make sense though," Emmett responded, still thinking about Bella showing up with J.

"You know how girls are." Demetri shrugged. "Always trying to show each other that they're better than everyone else. We've seen Tanya do it since we were kids. It is always interesting when someone doesn't back down to her though."

"Huh?" Emmett asked, turning his attention fully on Demetri. "What're you talking about?"

"Bella and Tanya this morning?" Demetri quirked an eyebrow at him as he looked on in confusion. "What were you thinking about?"

"Nothing." Emmett shook his head, trying to clear it of the conversation he'd been having with himself. "Any idea what all that was about though?" he asked, picking up on the last words Demetri had said.

"Dunno, maybe Bella just didn't want Tanya to think she could walk all over her," Demetri mused. "Where were you two yesterday anyways?"

"What makes you think I was anywhere with Bella yesterday?"

Demetri rolled his eyes at his friend. He never understood why any of them tried to keep things from each other; they all found out about everything one way or another, well, almost everything. "I have history seventh with Angela and Bella and when I noticed Bella wasn't there yesterday, I asked Angela where she was and she said Bella had taken off with you after lunch," Demetri explained. "And don't make up some dumb ass story; just tell me what's up."

Emmett thought about it to himself for a minute before replying. He could lie, but Demetri would see right through it and of the whole lot of them, Demetri was the most trustworthy. "You know that old theater over in Woodsborough?" he asked and Demetri nodded in confirmation. "They were showing _The Seven Year Itch_ yesterday afternoon and I have it on good authority that Bella loves classic movies and is partial to Marilyn Monroe."

"Who isn't?" Demetri smirked. "So you bailed during the first week of school to take Bella to the movies?"

Emmett could tell by the tone in Demetri's voice what kind of questions were coming next and he knew he needed to change the topic fast. "Yeah, so what?" he responded casually. "I passed by the library on my way out and you and Angela were sitting pretty close."

"Angela?" Demetri sat back with a confused look on his face.

"Yeah, there something going on there?" Emmett asked, pleased that his distraction seemed to have worked.

"With Angela? Edward's Angela? No." Demetri laughed lightly and shook his head.

"Ya'll seemed awfully close from where I was standing." Emmett gave him a knowing look as he tilted his head.

"Yeah, we normally sit together in study hall because we know each other and she can keep up a decent conversation because she reads something other than _Vogue_, but come on, really? You think I've got something going on with her?" Demetri asked, his tone unbelieving.

"Bella's into Dickens," Emmett replied casually.

Demetri almost did a double take at Emmett's words. Emmett never cared about what a girl read and that statement told him everything. "So, you and Bella are a thing, or what?" he asked, trying to further gauge his friend's feelings for the new girl.

"I don't know, maybe," Emmett replied his tone annoyed with the continued thoughts of Bella arriving this morning with J.

"Well, she'll be there tonight, right?" Demetri reminded him.

Emmett wasn't sure he wanted to continue on this path of conversation and quickly found an excuse to change topics. "You think they know that Alice has a website where she grades their sexual performances?" Emmett asked, nodding to the four soccer players in the front right corner of the room. The guys had been openly staring at Emmett and Demetri and quickly looked away when Demetri turned to look at them and then back to Emmett.

"I doubt it." Demetri chuckled softly. The teacher shot him and Emmett a look before continuing on with his lesson.

_I doubt the majority of them would care though_, he thought smugly to himself.

* * *

_July 1__st_

James glanced at Isabella out of the corner of his eye as he sped out into open water. She had on a deep blue one piece bathing suit that may as well have been a bikini because there was only a strip of material in the center connecting the top to the bottom. She sat deep in the seat with her legs stretched out in front of her slightly hanging over the edge of the boat. The water bounced up onto her legs making them glisten in the sunlight. Her hair blew out behind her making her look carefree and he smiled knowing that he was giving this to her.

"It's so quiet out here," she said, looking over at him.

"One of the few benefits of coming out before the rush," he acknowledged.

"But not the only one," she said, smiling at him.

"No, not the only one," he agreed, returning her smile.

"Do you spend a lot of time on the boat?" she asked, returning her gaze to the water.

"Ever since I was a kid." His eyes lingered on the exposed skin of her stomach.

"It must be nice," she continued.

"I've always thought there was something freeing about being out in the open waters," he confided, realizing he'd never shared that thought with anyone.

"It is." She smiled at him once again. He continued to take in her form and felt the overwhelming need to just touch her.

"Have you ever driven a boat?" he asked, drawing her attention.

"No," she said with a slight laugh.

"Come here," he requested, offering his hand to her.

"What?" She turned towards him, bringing her legs back inside the boat. "No," she said as he motioned for her to take the wheel. "I'll crash into something!"

"I'll help you," he said as she finally took his hand.

He sat her in his lap and took in the coconut scent of her sun tan lotion. He placed one of her hands on the wheel and the other on the throttle.

"To go faster you push it up." He placed his hands over hers. "To go slower you bring it down." His breath blew across her shoulder and tickled her ear slightly. She shivered in pleasure and James resisted tracing his lips across her skin. "Then you just steer like you would normally," he explained, moving the wheel slightly. "Nothing too fast or jerky." Once her hands were settled in position, he removed his hands and let them wander up and down her arms.

"See," he said after a couple minutes, "you're driving the boat." She bit her lip but didn't turn around.

"I think this may have just been a ploy to get me onto your lap," she accused, not looking at him.

"Maybe." He chuckled. "It worked. Plus, how am I going to wake board if I have to drive the whole time?"

"You're going to make me do this by myself?" she cried hysterically.

"You'll be fine," he said in a soothing voice.

"What if I crash or turn to hard or something?" she panicked.

"Then I'll die," he said seriously. She turned and looked at him, her face contorted in fright. "I'm kidding! Today's the perfect day. The water is somewhat calm; there are hardly any other boaters…" He slid a finger under her chin turning her face to his. "I trust you." He looked deeply into her eyes and he realized that he really did.

"Okay," she stuttered.

* * *

James bobbed slightly in the water as he grabbed for the rope. The water was slightly cool but felt great under the heat of the sun.

"You sure about this?" Bella hollered to him from the driver's seat.

_Silly girl_, he thought as he positioned himself. "Yes, I'm sure. Just ease into the speed slowly and you'll be fine."

"It's not me I'm worried about," she mumbled to herself, turning forward. She moved the throttle slowly up trying to keep the boat on as straight of a path as she could while glancing back at James constantly.

"You're gonna have to increase the speed if you expect to get me out of the water, Duchess!" James hollered as he was dragged slowly through the water.

Bella pushed the throttle up and the boat jerked forward causing James to do a somersault over the top of the water. He regained his footing quickly as many summers at the beach had made him completely comfortable in the water and soon he was skimming across the surface. He let go of the bar with one hand and ran his fingers through his damp hair shaking the water out of his eyes. He smiled as he noticed Isabella's constant glances at him and decided to show off a bit.

"Make some turns or something so I can jump the wake!" he called to her.

He jumped several of the wakes doing twist and turns here and there knowing how sculpted his arms and chest looked. He knew he had a good body and used it to his advantage when it came to girls. Most of the time he didn't even have to pursue them, they just came to him. Something told him that Isabella was completely different than the girls at Cromwell Academy and for some reason he felt the urge to try harder when it came to her.

Catching the next wake he tried to flip himself over, a task he'd only accomplished three or four times, but instead of landing gracefully back on his feet, he landed face first into the water inhaling a bunch of salt water up his nose. He came to the surface coughing and trying to clear his sinus to hear Isabella's laughter filling the air. He looked up at her surprised that she wasn't concerned about him being hurt.

"That's what you get for showing off," she said as he swam back to the boat.

"So you were paying attention then?" he asked as he got closer.

"I had to make sure you weren't going to hit anything," she explained.

"Whatever you say, Duchess," he said, shaking his head as he climbed back in the boat.

"You're all wet," she stated as he dripped onto her.

"And salty," he said, leaning in to kiss her.

She pushed against him trying to get away, but her shove took him by surprise and he lost his footing falling off the back of the boat. Bella covered her mouth with her hands in shock as James popped back above the water.

"I am so sorry!" she apologized with wide eyes.

"Geez, all I wanted was a kiss," he said, pretending to be hurt. "And you go and push me in the water."

"I didn't mean to," she said with heartfelt honesty.

"Whatever," he said, trying to convince her he was angry.

"Here, let me help you," she said, offering out her hand. The look on her face was so remorseful he almost felt bad for tricking her. He gripped her hand and with one quick tug, she was in the water next to him.

She popped up next to him rubbing the water out of her eyes. "That was mean," she said, slapping him, but the grin on her face told him he wasn't in trouble.

"We're even now," he shrugged, pulling her into his arms. "Now, how about that kiss?" He moved in towards her lips.

"I don't know if you deserve one after that," she said, turning her head quickly so all he met with was her cheek.

"Come on," he said, his voice turning sweet. "You know you want to kiss me."

"What on earth would give you that impression?" she turned back, her eyes smoldering.

"Your whole body tells me you want to kiss me," he said, grazing her neck lightly with his lips.

"You're pretty full of yourself, you know that?" she asked before his lips finally met hers.

"Yes, I am," he admitted after they'd ended the kiss, "but we all are."

"I'm not," she said, taken aback as he climbed back into the boat before offering her his hand.

"No, not you." He tugged her back into the boat. "I meant my friends. It's like a prerequisite or something."

"So all your friends are this cocky?" She lifted an eyebrow as she settled back into her seat.

"The majority of them." He shrugged as he took off his life vest.

"Why?" she asked, turning and crossing her legs as she watched him pull in his board and the rope.

"Part of our upbringing I guess," he said. "We're given practically everything and have essentially no rules to follow, so we realize pretty early on that we are the 'gifted' ones so to speak."

"Gifted how?" she asked, intrigued.

"I'm not sure you want to know," he said honestly, looking back at her.

"I can take it," she said, mesmerized as he stood, the water making pictures on his skin as it reflected from the sun.

He took the seat next to Isabella and leaned back with his head resting in his hands. "We have money; the majority of us have stunning good looks." He smirked at her. "Myself included." Bella rolled her eyes at him and he continued. "We're shown that we pretty much have no one to answer to and that we can do as we please as long as we don't embarrass the family name, and then on top of all that, the majority of us have brains as well."

"Too bad you're excluded from that one," Bella joked.

"Touché." He waved a finger at her. "I have brains where they count," he acknowledged. "So you take all that in and honestly it just feels like the world is our playground and everything in it our playthings."

"I'm no ones toy," she stated seriously, staring at him.

"I didn't say you were," he corrected her; "I said that's how it seems to us. Really, the girls are worse than the guys."

"How so?" she asked, still intrigued even though she found herself slightly disgusted at some of the things he'd said.

"Seems like there's so much more backstabbing with girls than with guys, ya know?" he asked, pulling a bottle of water out of the cooler and taking a long drink. "One guy screws with another and you punch it out and then you're done."

It was Bella's turn to smirk. "That's because when girls fight, it's an art form."

"Whatever," he said, taking another swig.

"Tell me something they've done then," she said, taking the bottle out of his hands.

"Alright, Duchess, I'll play," he said, sitting up. "Sophomore year, Tanya was hooking up pretty frequently with my buddy, Emmett, and at some party he ends up getting blown by some senior. Now I can see why Tanya would get all pissy at this girl because she and Emmett were a thing or whatever at the time, but she doesn't say anything to the girl. Two weeks later Tanya was busted for hooking up with this random guy in the locker room! Doesn't make any sense!" He threw his hands up in the air.

"Oh sure it does," Bella said, smiling and nodding. "The girl that blew Emmett had a crush on the guy that Tanya hooked up with in the locker room," she explained as if it were as easy as two plus two.

"How do you figure that?" he asked, looking at her like she was nuts.

"I told you, art form," she said, raising her eyebrows. "She was pissed at that senior girl for taking something that belongs to her…"

"I doubt Emmett thinks he belongs to anyone," James interrupted her.

"Even so, she feels he does. So, she finds something important to the girl that has nothing to do with her and takes it essentially."

"That's way too complicated," he said, stealing the water back.

"Art," she said simply.

"Would've been easier if she'd just decked her," he said, shaking his head; "Hotter too." He laughed and Bella just shook her head.


	8. Chapter 8

**All recognizable characters are property of Stephanie Meyer and the author makes no financial gains from using them. I just like to make them spoiled little rich kids.**

**This story will bounce back and forth between the present time (senior year) and the summer before. Please do not hesitate to PM me with any questions you may have.**

**Big thanks to Shepeppy for betaing this for me.**

** Check out the banner for this story made by the very talented MsRason (link can be found on my profile).

* * *

**

_July 1__st__ continued _

"Alright, D, you ready to try this?" James asked as he strapped Isabella into a life vest.

"I can't believe you're making me wakeboard." She glanced wearily at the board he'd placed at her feet.

"You put your feet in and hold onto the rope," he explained.

"Easy as that, huh?" she asked, twisting slightly as he tightened her jacket.

"You just skim the water like you do when snowboarding."

"I've never been snowboarding," she said, agitated.

"Really?" he asked, surprised. "What does your family do in the winter then?"

"Oh we go to the mountains and all, I just normally ski," she informed him.

"Well, I don't have any skis," he said as he lowered the board into the water. "So you'll have to try something new."

"Lovely," she muttered, sliding into the water.

James glanced back making sure she was in the water correctly and that she had a grip on the rope. He increased the throttle little by little watching Isabella the whole time. As the speed caught up with the rope, it jerked her forward before flying out of her hand.

"You gotta hold on tighter," he yelled after she'd come above the water.

She glared at him before swimming and grabbing for the rope again. He started out a little slower this time and when he was sure she had the rope, he increased the speed. It didn't fly out of her hands this time, but her feet flew out behind her and she was being pulled across the water on her stomach. James shook his head trying not to laugh as he killed the speed on the boat and dove off the back end.

"I'm going to drown out here," she said as he got closer to her.

"No, you're not," he rebuked, gripping her waist. "Keep a hold of the rope, but keep your butt underneath you and let the rope pull you upright." He tried to demonstrate by pulling the rope and pushing her up.

"You just wanted an excuse to grab my ass," she accused, smiling at him.

"Didn't know I needed an excuse." He grabbed it again and flashed her his biggest smile.

"Hmph," she muttered good-naturedly.

"You think you got it now?" he asked after he'd situated her again.

"Let's give it a shot," she replied, letting out a deep breath.

The boat sped up slightly quicker this time and he watched the determined look cross Isabella's face as she noticed the slack on the rope lessening. She tightened her arms and all at once she was on her feet and grazing across the surface of the water. A big smile appeared on James' face as she fought to keep her balance, her eyebrows scrunched in concentration. Once she had been up for awhile he decided to let her try the wakes and swerved the boat just slightly so she'd run over one. She wasn't expecting it though and when the top of the board dipped, she fell over. She popped out of the water with a smile on her face.

"You okay?" he shouted to her.

She nodded. "You could've warned me!"

"You wanna try again?" he asked, circling around so that she could grab the rope. She nodded, grabbing the rope and situating herself once more.

As soon as the boat had gained enough speed, she was on her feet again flying over the water. James looked over at her silently asking her if she was ready and with a curt nod he made a large turn. He couldn't help but smile at the determined look on her face as she sailed through the wake and continued skimming across the water.

* * *

"My arms are killing me," Bella noted as James drove the boat back to the dock.

"You're not used to it," he pointed out.

"I'm wiped," she said, leaning lazily back into the seat.

"I figured you might be," he said with a sly smile.

"What's that grin for?" she asked, suddenly taking notice of the grin on his face.

James uncharacteristically bit his lip before glancing over at her. "I told your mom I didn't know how late we'd be and that you'd probably be awfully tired when we got back." Isabella gave him an amused look. "So she suggested you just stay at my place."

"You have guest rooms?" she asked, playing the innocent card and James felt his shorts tighten at the thought.

"Oh we have them," he confirmed as he helped her out of the boat pulling her to him. "Not that you'll be using one."

She looked pensive for a moment before asking, "But where shall I sleep?"

He pressed himself fully against her and whispered in her ear, "Who said anything about sleeping?"

"What about your parents?" she asked, leaning back and looking up at him.

"They'll be gone until Saturday," he explained, picking up her hand. He began walking down the dock pulling her behind him.

"And what makes you think I'm that kind of girl?" she asked, arrogantly.

"Last night." He shrugged slightly as he opened the door to his father's Porsche 356 Speedster.

"What makes you think that'll happen again?"

"Perhaps I need to convince you?" he asked, leaning over her seat and moving it all the way back.

"What're you doing?" she asked, trying to remain calm but the alarmed note in her voice gave her away as he settled himself on the floor between her knees.

"I'm going to convince you." With that, he began sliding up the bottom of her sundress as he placed light kisses on the insides of her thighs.

"By doing what?" Her voice was breathy and the look in her eyes told him she already knew. "You do realize we're out in the open, right?" she asked as he continued up her legs.

"Isabella." His tone was suddenly serious and she couldn't help but stare back into his eyes. He reached for the handle and reclined the seat. "Just lay back and enjoy okay?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.

* * *

Bella could feel the flush on her skin slowly dissipating as James drove down the highway with a confident little smirk on his face.

"Proud of yourself are you?" she asked, glancing over at him.

"A bit," he acknowledged, keeping his eyes on the road but running his thumb over her knuckles.

"You seem like you've had a lot of experience with that before," she observed.

"With the act itself or in the car?" he asked cockily.

"In the car," she clarified. "I've no doubt that you have plenty of experience with the act itself."

"Not much actually," he responded, still not glancing over at her.

"Really?" The surprise in her voice was unmistakable.

"No, normally I'm on the receiving end," he admitted, winking at her.

* * *

James could hear the water running above him as he gathered some food in the kitchen and let his mind wander over thoughts of Isabella's body. He thought about the water running over her soft curves and the soap clinging to her ample chest. He smirked to himself as he finished pulling items out of the fridge and made his way upstairs.

Bella came out of the bathroom fully dressed in a pair of white cotton shorts and a black tank top. Her hair was still wet and fell in waves around her shoulders.

"Feel better?" he asked, walking towards her after setting down the tray of food.

"Much," she admitted, grazing her hands across his chest and gazing up at him. He cupped the back of her head with his right hand and pulled her lips to his.

"There's some food over there if you're hungry," he informed her, still kissing the corners of her mouth.

"I'm starving actually," she said in a slightly seductive voice, breaking away from him and making her way to the tray.

"For food or something else?" he asked, looking over at her. She shrugged her shoulders and gave him a small smile. James shook his head as he made his way into the bathroom.

The bathroom was still filled with the steam from Isabella's shower and he breathed in deeply taking in her scent. The hot water felt good on his skin and he couldn't help but think about having Isabella in here with him. He washed and rinsed quickly wanting to get back to her. He turned the water off and realized that he hadn't brought any clothes in with him. He pulled one of the fluffy white towels off the rack and wrapped it around his waist before opening the door.

It took his eyes a minute to adjust before he realized that Isabella had shut off all the lights and was sitting on his bed amidst the glow from his iPod alarm clock. There was a light blue tint to her skin, but it still looked incredibly creamy.

"It's dark in here," he noted, not moving. She swung her legs off the bed and silently made her way over to him.

"Is that a bad thing?" she asked, sliding her hands lazily up his chest.

"I'm okay with it if you are." He was suddenly nervous and unsure why.

"I am," she said softly as she began placing kisses on his collarbone.

He took her into his arms, caressing the open skin on her back and let out a little moan when she nipped at the skin on his collarbone. She released him from her embrace as she led him to the bed and he picked up the remote for the alarm clock, quickly filling the room with Linkin Park. Bella stopped for a moment before glancing back at him and smirking.

"Interesting choice," she said as he lowered the volume a couple notches.

He sat on the bed and pulled her to him capturing her lips with his. She climbed on top of him, straddling his hips and digging her hands in his hair. The silkiness of her skin entranced him and he felt the need to touch as much of it as possible. He trailed his lips slowly over the curve of her neck and she sighed at feeling of his breath on her. She let her hands wander over his shoulders and down his arms, tracing along the lines of each muscle that lay below. He slid the straps of her top off her shoulders, placing light kisses there before continuing on.

She began tracing the curve of his ear with her tongue and he couldn't help grinding her into him. She took a deep breath and stretched her arms above her head, signaling that it was okay to remove her shirt. He started at the bottom, sliding his thumbs over her front and his fingers over her back as he pushed her shirt up, revealing her chest. He took a deep breath taking her in as she dropped her shirt on the floor. He ran his hands over her chest once, barely touching her before placing soft kisses right below her collarbone. He rubbed his thumbs over her already firm nipples and felt them grow harder under his touch. She let out a light moan as he placed his mouth on her and he palmed the other breast in response.

After exploring her for awhile he brought his lips back to hers and kissed her passionately. She stood as they continued to kiss and slid her shorts off over her hips, stepping out of them once they hit the floor. He let out a slight groan, running his finger tips over her hips as he realized she'd had nothing on beneath them. She kissed him hungrily, running her nails down his back, causing him to shudder in response. Tracing the line of the towel, she brought her hands to the front and removed it letting it fall to the floor.

She placed kisses down his neck and onto his chest as she slid her hands up his legs and over his length. He groaned into her mouth as he picked her up, feeling her warmth on his abs. He turned around and laid her on the bed before reaching into his night stand. He kissed her again as he positioned himself above her. All of a sudden, he felt unsure of himself and wondered if this was right. He glanced up at her, staring deep into her eyes.

"Are you sure?" he asked the question that had never appeared before in his head.

She smiled softly and ran her fingers over his cheek before whispering, "Yes."

He smiled softly at her before placing a light kiss on her lips and speaking again. "I took her hand in mine, and we went out of the ruined place; and, as the morning mists had risen long ago when I first left the forge, so, the evening mists were rising now," he quoted. Her eyes shined with deep emotion and he knew it was all for him. For the first time, he looked upon his lover with something more than simple desire and when he entered her, it all felt right.

* * *

_Present Day_

Bella walked through the front door of the Cullen home with Edward shortly behind her, flipping his keys around his finger and whistling softly to himself. They both dropped their leather backpacks on the sofa in the foyer before continuing through the house.

"Ah, young Master Cullen." A butler came in, addressing Edward. "Your father has asked me to inform you that your brother and sister will be arriving tomorrow afternoon and not to make any plans for dinner."

"Fabulous," Edward muttered, walking into the kitchen; Bella and the butler following him.

"What a way to spend a Saturday evening," Bella slightly scoffed as she entered the kitchen.

"Mr. Cullen also asked for your attendance as well Ms. Swan," the butler informed Bella. Edward smirked as he searched the inside of the enormous fridge.

"Thank you, Aro," Edward said, his voice slightly muffled from inside the fridge.

Aro turned and left the kitchen without another word. Bella sighed and hoisted herself up onto the island in the middle of the kitchen.

"I didn't know you had siblings," Bella said as Edward produced two bottles of Coke in glass bottles.

"Whose room did you think you were staying in?" he asked.

"Glass bottles?" Bella asked with a cocked eyebrow as she took a sip.

"All soda tastes better in glass bottles," he informed her, leaning next to her.

"Very true," Bella agreed, taking another drink. "So, I'm staying in your sister's room? Will she want it back while she's here?"

Edward smiled playfully at her. "Yeah maybe you two can have a naughty pillow fight or something." She smacked him in the arm with her left hand. "No, I was joking," he admitted. "Jane and Alec have the south wing of the house. Your room was never occupied."

The two sat there in silence, both lost in their own thoughts as they sipped from the glass bottles. Bella was reflecting on the conversation she'd had with Kate a couple nights ago and wondered if Kate's advice had truly been genuine. The hurt on Emmett's face this morning when she'd shown up with Jasper had tugged at her, but she knew that Kate knew these boys way better than she did and agreed that Emmett would probably need more of a challenge if he was going to stick around. Bella could already see from just one week of school that the majority of the females would fall into these guys' laps with barely a nod of recognition.

Emmett seemed so different from the rest of them when they were alone though. He opened doors for her and acted like a complete gentleman, almost the same way James had over the summer. She blinked hard as the thoughts of James from over the summer flooded through her head. Wednesday night had almost been too much for her and she knew she wouldn't be able to sit next to him the entire hour during physics, so Emmett's distraction had helped.

She hopped off the counter and threw the glass bottle into the recycling can that she knew was kept just outside the back door. Her face was set in determination as she decided to make sure Emmett knew that she wasn't just toying with him.

Bella's abrupt momentum startled Edward from his own thoughts. This first week back had been more confusing for him than any he could remember. Something was off between him and Angela and he had no clue what it was. Things with Tanya weren't much better either and the fact that he hadn't spent anymore time with her since Tuesday evening was weighing more on him than he'd like to admit. The desire for her just wasn't there. Twice this week she'd tried to pull him into the projection room above the school's theater but he'd turned her down. He knew it wouldn't be long before she made an issue out of it and he really wasn't looking forward to dealing with that.

Perhaps the thing that was bothering him the most, though, was the fact that Bella had appeared in his dreams twice more since the first one on Monday night. He had no idea why this girl kept invading his subconscious, but she did. He tried to listen when she talked during lunch without being too obvious about it. On the one hand, Emmett was obviously interested in her, J was making some sort of move on her, and he knew that James wasn't over her at all. It was too much competition from his own friends to deal with, not to mention any extra attention he paid her would be immediately noticed by Tanya and possibly even by Angela, another headache he did not need.

There was something about her though. Small things she did that always caught his attention. He'd even woken up early on Thursday, eager for their ride to school together. He'd been home three nights this week to have dinner with his parents simply because he knew she'd be there.

He shook his head in attempt to clear his thoughts before following her in and dropping his empty bottle into the can as well. Bella watched him with an amused expression he didn't understand and when he raised his eyebrows at her in question, she simply shrugged and turned away.

"So, did you need a ride tonight or is one of your many suitors picking you up?" Edward asked as they climbed the couple stairs to the east wing of the house.

"Aren't you picking up Angela?" Bella asked, slightly surprised he had offered her a ride.

"Yeah, but I doubt she'd mind. I think she actually likes you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked, curiously.

"Well, she's not exactly keen on all the other girls if you know what I mean," he said, cocking his head to the side.

"Like who?" she asked, even though she already had a pretty good idea. While no real hostility had been shown amongst the group over the summer, Bella had picked up on small things here and there.

"Well, she's not that big of a fan of Kate, but if I were to be giving Tanya a ride…Well that might be an issue."

_If she knew what kind of a ride Tanya would prefer to be getting from him, she might have an even bigger issue_, Bella thought.

"Imagine that," she chose to say instead.

"Rosalie said she talked to you," he said as if that explained everything.

"She did," Bella admitted, nodding slightly. "Doesn't mean I don't understand why Angela would have an issue with you giving Tanya a ride."

They had reached the end of the hall and Bella had her hand on her door. She turned back to face Edward and ran a perfectly manicured finger along his jaw line.

"I know I'd have an issue with it if it were me." She smirked at him before turning and going into her room. Edward stood there for a moment, briefly remembering the dreams he'd been having all week and then turned quickly into his room, heading for the shower.

* * *

Kate stretched out across her deep purple pillows, completely sated.

"So, is there any news to report?" Garrett asked as he crawled back up her body, placing open mouthed kisses on her bare stomach.

"On?" she asked her tone light and unemotional.

"James and Bella," he replied in an annoyed tone.

"Oh," she said as if just recalling that this information would be interesting to him. Garrett knew the tone well enough to know that she'd simply been waiting for him to ask and rolled his eyes even though he knew she couldn't see. "Well, they're still apart, obviously."

"So, I'm winning the bet then." He smirked as he continued to place kisses on her taut stomach.

"He's not ready yet," Kate replied coolly.

"She seems to be getting awfully cozy with McCarty," Garrett observed.

"Emmett?" she snorted the name before bursting into laughter. "Please, that boy is nothing but a distraction until Evans can fully remove his head from his ass and step up."

As much satisfaction as he got from winning random bets with Kate, Garrett felt slightly guilty making them at his friends' expense. Emmett was a decent guy, if not a bit of a blockhead, but they all six brought something to the table and Emmett played his role well.

"So you don't think Bella will become attached to him?" he asked, wondering what Kate's game plan in all of this was. He knew that she left little to chance and it wouldn't have surprised him at all to find out that she had essentially pushed Emmett and Bella together in an effort to get James to really take notice.

"Hardly. Emmett is a distraction for the time being. If Bella's attention isn't focused elsewhere for a bit, James will never come around. Boys are always great little distractions." She smirked down at Garrett as she ran her hand through his thick, dark, tousled hair.

"Is that what I am?" he asked, biting her skin softly and causing her to smile wider.

"Well, you certainly can be." She giggled and he smiled back in response. "Seriously though, they had too much going on this summer for either of them to not be sucked back in right away, but he's not ready and she shouldn't accept anything less. Therefore, she needs a distraction; you're obviously not available, Demetri's not much of a threat, J's well, he's J and Edward has too much going on to begin with."

"Which leaves Emmett," Garrett stated.

"Exactly." She smiled down at him as he propped himself up on his arms.

"What will you do if Emmett gets attached though?" Garrett inquired, trying to find holes in her plan.

"Emmett is easily amused. I'll find some half-witted sophomore with a new set of huge bouncing boobs and Emmett will be happy again," she mused.

"You've got this all figured out, don't you?"

"Of course." She shrugged and smiled at him. "Now get off of me so I can shower before Emmett's tonight."

Garrett chuckled lightly and rolled off her per her request. His eyes never left Kate's legs until she shut her bathroom door cutting off his view. He rolled back onto the millions of pillows that adorned her bed and began to plot. This was one bet he was not going to lose. Kate was a master manipulator, but her downfall was that she often sold others short. While Garrett hadn't seen much interaction between Emmett and Bella so far, tonight would be the perfect opportunity. With a little luck and some well placed comments, Emmett and Bella would be a lot more interested in each other than Kate had planned and come Christmas, Evans would still be single.


End file.
